The Showdown: John Q. Public vs The Donald

Abraham Lincoln said, "I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him." Take a second and ask yourself if this is the America he envisioned. Capitalism is a societal structure in which we, ideally, receive the best product at the fairest price. Or as Webster puts it; " ...the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market"(Merriam-Webster). But there is no question that we are at a time in history in which we must revise our notions of what we consider the best product or the fairest price.

Don't mistake my speculation here for some type unyielding anti-capitalism sentiment. On the contrary. In fact, I believe that conducted thoughtfully and diplomatically, capitalism is the most logical and pragmatic method of self-organization that mankind can embrace. I believe that the free market is a fantastic concept, in theory. However, in practice there lies opportunity and means to manipulate the fundamentals of this system. Resulting, in essence, with embezzling of the poor by the rich.

I'm trying to make sure that I'm interpreting this properly. We're supposed to to concede that within an economic system that is driven and sustained by the production and purchase of goods and services, that it's consistent with everyone's best interest for the elite and well-connected to continue to amass excessive riches from generation to generation, while those same hard-working and naïve "sharecroppers" of the middle and lower class toil for their entire lives in an attempt to obtain a pittance of the wealth endowed to this pre-ordained upper class? I'm going to have to respectfully disagree.

The founding fathers were wise to phrase our inalienable right as "the pursuit of happiness" rather than the certainty of happiness. Though, shouldn't we be entitled to pursue that goal without strategically inserted loopholes and exceptions applying only to those who stand to profit from such legislation, therefore hindering our quest?

Here is a perfect example. Social security was initially created as a safety net and assistance to those lacking other means necessary. Presently, the maximum level of income that an individual can be assessed for FICA is $106,800.00, regardless if the individual earns $50,000 or $50 million. If John Q. Public who cleans Tiger Wood's toilets has to pay 10% of his income to FICA, then why is Tiger only paying 1/100 of a percent of his income? First of all, we know who really needs that extra money. And second of all, if there was no cap on the amount of taxable income, there would be a surplus of staggering proportions with which the government would be able to allot to the repayment of our national debt as well as increase domestic projects that would be more beneficial to both Tiger and John Q. Public.

The United States is the greatest nation on the face of the Earth... in theory. Somewhere between defeating the Nazi's and the era of supplying entertainers and athletes with enough money to put gold and diamonds on their teeth and olympic-size swimming pools in all 3 of their mansions, America lost sight of the ideals that sustained the will and determination of this nation from its inception. We've got to admit it to ourselves first, that some fundamental aspects of our culture and government demand revision. Standing idly by as others slowly, but steadily, erode our intrinsic values is not an option, it is tantamount to the surrender of our principles and therefore the basis of our existence.

Steroids....Still?

Ok, it's the end of June, a few weeks from the All-Star break and the biggest news in baseball is that Sammy Sosa took steroids 6 years ago. I think a more important topic to address would be the fact that attendance is dropping faster than the dow jones. I realize we're in the midst of a recession but I'm not letting the MLB off that easy. Let's not forget that owners have continued to increase ticket and concession prices to the point that it costs more to head to the ballpark on a Saturday than it does to buy your groceries for a week.

So, I'm trying to wrap my head around this: Our nation's financial infrastructure is at best in a slump and at worst completely caving in on itself. The industries that brought our nation unparalleled wealth since the industrial revolution are going the way of the 6-tape cassette changer in a Mercedes, and owners of major ball clubs have decided it makes sense, financially, to charge $8 for a beer, $6 for a cup of Pepsi and $5 for a bag of peanuts that you could have bought from a vendor right in front of the stadium for $1.50?

Listen, I realize running a major league operation requires some serious dough, especially since you have Steinbrenner and his boys buying up every piece of talent from Beijing to Barbados. But do they really think raising prices at a time when disposable income is the lowest it's been in decades is a practical way of drawing fans to the stadium? You can have it one way or the other. Either rip me off on my ticket and make refreshments more affordable and less of a complex financial decision, or let me through the gates for a reasonable price and swindle me into buying a dixie cup of beer for $10 once you have me trapped inside.

The point is, until baseball becomes more accessible and gets it's act together the sport is going to lose those of us steadfast and die-hard fans who have enjoyed it over the years, not to mention an entire new generation of potential fans.

Like I said, it's late June and the biggest news related to the sport involves a guy who juiced during Bush's first term. The entire era merits an asterisk next to it for the simple fact that we can never truly know what really happened and who might have been involved. We need to face facts, you can't pick and choose which ballplayers to crucify for using steroids. Instead of dragging up the past and focusing on the scandals of a generation that is defined by a few bad apples who ruined the whole bunch, emphasis needs to be focused on the future of the sport by restoring integrity and accessibility to our once national past-time.