December 3, 2015--What Have the Kochs Wrought?

For years the Koch Brothers and their kind--fellow billionaire casino baron Sheldon Adelson and hedge fund CEO Paul Singer among many others--have been inflaming with anger and fear conservative Americans who have genuine concerns about their declining resources and prospects, especially for their children.

They have been brilliant at controlling the public narrative as to why this is occurring. Rather than taking a hard look at structural causes such as the growing inequality that has led to people's frustration, fear, and anger they have instead, through groups that they fund and politicians they control, manipulated the discussion so that governments, mainstream media, and liberal academics are said to be responsible.

Their agenda, though, is self-serving for in truth they have hypocritically been the main beneficiaries of government policies that allow them to shelter most of their earnings and have successfully influenced the policy environment that has largely deregulated the institutions through which they have gained and retained their wealth. These policies are among the reasons average Americans are slipping behind while the Kochs and Adelsons amass additional billions.

If the public were to know the truth, those with the most assets might become vulnerable and that is why the Kochs and others have attempted to distort the truth, all the while keeping working people distracted by social issues such as same-sex marriage, immigration, reproductive politics, and a steady drumbeat of conspiracy theories such as the one that calls all of science into question and blames America's problems on people of color, affirmative action, political correctness, government employees (including teachers), and gays.

This is the context, the culture that has nurtured and propelled Donald TRUMP to the fore. And now these GOP donors and what's left of the Republican establishment are fearing that the monster they created--TRUMP--may actually win the nomination and if elected turn out to be a true traitor to his class.

The danger he represents to them is that he knows how the game is really played. He knows that from the inside, as he boastfully proclaims, having played it. He thus threatens to shatter the illusion system that has been foisted on ordinary people, struggling Americans, who have been the dupes and unknowing enablers of our oligarchs.

Sheldon Adelson