Op-Ed Columnist - America Is Not Yet Lost - NYTimes.com

Op-Ed Columnist - America Is Not Yet Lost - NYTimes.com

Klugman makes some good points here. A response and the implications for the American Dream.

1. If we keep it up, despite what Klugman says, we will indeed emulate the Romans (and the Hapsburgs, and the French, and the British, and the Russian Soviets....), both in terms of imperial overstretch, and the non-functioning and the corruption of the Senate -- along with their ceded of power to the executive -- which was an integral part of it's downfall. Poland was never an Empire...

2. We should separate the sources of the current problems. Some stem from the current Senate as it stands today in terms of how it operates. Then there are those whose source is traceable to the institution as it was formed and evolved.

In terms of today, our Congress is wholly owned by monied interests, who demand these special favors that Krugman mentions in return for all the financial support they provide candidates. This will only get worse with the recent Supreme Court rulings. Founders foresaw some of this: Jefferson warned of monied interests. However, I don't think they could have seen how incredibly powerful and corrupting it could be.

As an aside, this prompts the question: so even without Republican obstructionism, would something gloriously substantial be happening? Passage of so-called health care reform?

In terms of the Senate institutionally, it always has been fundamentally undemocratic. Even following reforms from a century ago, it still violates the basic principle of one person one vote. A Senator from Wyoming represents the voices of like a half a million people, and on from CA like 30 some million. This creates a core problem.

If these issues are not addressed -- the current corruption and fundamental undemocratic structures -- then the American Dream will continue to be in jeopardy.