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Politics & Government

The Rigged System-Who Rigged the System and How to Fix a Rigged System

The Nation did a Special Report on the "Dirty Secret" behind the wealth of Warren Buffett called "the moat." Bill Gates-"parasitic" warning.

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Images generated by Copilot for L. A. "Tony" Kovach op-ed for the Patch.
Images generated by Copilot for L. A. "Tony" Kovach op-ed for the Patch. (Images generated by Copilot for L. A. "Tony" Kovach op-ed for the Patch. )

First up is from a voice from the political left who has attracted positive attention even from some on the political right. From Amazon’s introduction to the book: “The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It” by President William Jefferson “Bill” Clinton (D) era Secretary of Labor Robert B. Reich (D), we see the following. “There is a mounting sense that our political-economic system is no longer working, but what is the core problem and how do we remedy it? With the characteristic clarity and passion that have made him a central civil voice, bestselling author of Saving Capitalism and The Common Good Robert B. Reich shows how wealth and power have combined to install an oligarchy and undermine democracy. Reich exposes the myths of meritocracy, national competitiveness, corporate social responsibility, the “free market,” and the political “center,” all of which are used by those at the top to divert attention from their takeover of the system and to justify their accumulation of even more wealth and power. In demystifying the current system, Reich reveals where power actually lies and how it is wielded and invites us to reclaim power and remake the system for all.”

There is a lot of useful points to unpack in that but for now note that Reich said that those with power are an oligarchy that undermines democracy and is diverting attention of their takeover of the system to accumulate even more wealth and power. For those who have been following this periodic series of articles, recall similar points about deception and misdirection methods presented made by this political independent in the Patch post linked below.

https://patch.com/florida/lake...

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Reich's concerns have been fairly common Democratic talking points for decades and for good reasons that Reich details in books, articles, videos, and via social media.

Surveys suggest that a clear majority of Americans of all political backgrounds and interests hold similar views.

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For example, an article posted on the FrameWorks Institute website by Clara Blustein Lindholm dated June 21, 2024 starts like this.

“If I asked you whether you think the system is rigged in America, you’d be likely to say “yes”—and you wouldn’t be alone. According to results from our February 2024 Culture Change Tracking Survey, 70% of Americans believe that “the system is rigged.”

At the core of this “system is rigged” mindset is the idea that a powerful few are manipulating how society works to benefit themselves and hurt the rest of us. It’s a mindset that has become an increasingly dominant explanation for the problems facing our country, and is abundantly present in both progressive and conservative social movement communications (although definitions of the “powerful few” and the “rest of us” vary widely).”

Other surveys in recent years have revealed similar results to what Lindholm cited, ranging from about 65 to 70 plus percent of the population telling pollsters they believe that the system in the U.S. is rigged.

The screen capture below from left-leaning Bing's AI powered Copilot summarizes some of the surveys and research.

As this periodic series on the Patch has noted, there are politicians from both major parties that have said “the system is rigged.”

Senators Elizabeth Warren (MA-D), Bernie Sanders (VT-DS), and deposed 45th President Donald J. Trump (R) are among them.

Note that just because they have each used the phrase "the system is rigged" doesn't mean that they see the solutions in the same way. That said, the fact that leaders on the left and right have used similar words to describe the situation in the U.S. would itself suggest that the problem of a "rigged system" is real and not imagined.

Lindholm's article for the FrameWorks Institute made these two broad points.

"First, it is crucial to explain specific ways a particular aspect of “the system” is rigged."

"Second, once you’ve explained how the system is rigged, it’s important to offer concrete solutions for how we can un-rig that aspect of the system."

Let's pause to note that her remarks on those two bullet points are common sense. On our MHProNews and MHLivingNews platforms, as we have explored in reports and articles about the "rigged system," we used this quote/illustration below by the late motivational author and speaker Zig Ziglar that makes a similar point to Lindholm's.

https://www.manufacturedhomepr...

Lindholm's article shared the following matrix. Note that the orange call out box shown below was added by this writer.


Imagine Trading Places with an American Oligarch

The rigged system has become so apparent that it is increasingly difficult to deny that it exists.

Both major parties have talked about the rigged system, as have minor parties.

To help understand what is occurring in the U.S., imagine for a few moments that you are a billionaire. You became wealthy in part because of connections and savvy. You played the game well, and now you are wildly wealthy. With that wealth comes a measure of market, media, and political power. What you might do is try to cozy up to the party 'of the little guy.' You might start donating large sums to 'charities.' You may make written, audio, and video statements about how higher taxes on the rich would be a good thing.

In short, you may posture being on the side of the little guy even though you are still very much interested in taking care of yourself, perhaps in concert with others who have 'rigged the system.'

There is obvious evidence that this is precisely what has been occurring for years.

According to left-leaning CNBC: Warren "Buffett calls his philanthropy “the easiest deed in the world” because “the giving is painless and may well lead to a better life for both you and your children.” “Over many decades I have accumulated an almost incomprehensible sum simply by doing what I love to do,” he said. “I’ve made no sacrifice nor has my family.""

However, Buffett's own son Peter Buffett, who has headed up the Warren funded Novo Foundation, contradicted his dad's assertions.

https://www.manufacturedhomepr...

Warren Buffett - chairman of of the giant Berkshire Hathaway (BRK) conglomorate - is one of the world's richest men. He said the following to left-leaning CNBC while his longtime partner and vice-chairman Charlie Munger was still alive.

"Politicians in this country [i.e.: the U.S.A.] want more power. The rich want more power."

https://www.manufacturedhomepr...

That's blunt. But so is the following. "There's class warfare, all right, but it's my class, the rich class, that's making war, and we're winning." A few years later, Buffett doubled down on that and boldly said: "Actually, there's been class warfare going on for the last twenty years, and my class has won."

https://www.manufacturedhomepr...

Buffett and The Moat

That said, borrowing from the principle (not the specific example) made by Lindholm to understand how the wealthy often achieve their wealth one should understand what Warren Buffett called "the moat" or sometimes referred to as the "castle and moat."

Not only has Buffett spoken about the moat, but chief executive officer (CEO) Kevin Clayton of Clayton Homes has spoken about it at some length in a video interview with transcript found at this link here. According to Clayton, Buffett preaches the moat and corporate leaders like Clayton are then supposed to teach "the moat" to others on their team. Clayton Homes owns conventional 'site builders' and manufactured home production centers too. Berkshire Hathaway also owns modular home production via Clayton and MiTek Inc.

In the subheading for this article we referenced a special report that the left-leaning The Nation did about Warren Buffett's "Dirty Secret."

https://www.manufacturedhomeli...

There are thousands upon thousands of articles and posts found online about the moat as Buffett teaches it. Left-leaning Google's AI powered Gemini said this about the moat.

A longtime ally of Buffett's is William "Bill" Gates III, co-founder of giant Microsoft which has already battled federal regulators over antitrust (i.e.: anti-monopolization) violations. Talking to left-leaning CNBC, Gates said the following about Buffett.

Gates and Buffett have both invested billions into the Gates Foundation. Gates has investments in Berkshire Hathaway (BRK). So, Gates and Buffett are not just friends, they are strategic allies on several levels in business and what has been called philanthro-feudalism, philanthro-capitalism, or the Charitable Industrial Complex.

With the Buffett moat method and Gate's observation that "Warren" has "found imperfections in terms of markets, that's not value added to society, that's a zero sum game that is almost parasitic" in mind, consider the following.

Previously in this periodic series on the Patch we mentioned James Schmitz Jr. and his colleagues at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve who have said that monopolistic behavior "sabotage" and "destroy markets." Gates "parasitic" and Buffett's man-eating amphibians laden "moat" are their stated methods used. While Schmitz may not use the term "moat" and "parasitic" these are apparently parallel concepts to his "sabotage monopoly" thesis. Schmitz et al are researchers who said that the affordable housing crisis has been caused by collusion between private interests and HUD. We've shared some of Schmitz and his colleagues insights in posts on the Patch linked here and here.

In the post below, the importance of robust antitrust (i.e.: anti-monopolization) legal action was advocated as an important part of the solution to the problems facing America.

https://patch.com/florida/lake...

So, as the problem begins to come into focus, part of the solution is enforcement of existing antitrust (i.e.: anti-monopolization laws).

Clayton Homes, for example, has a nearly 50 percent market share in the manufactured housing industry. Clayton is a dominating influence at the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) and at many MHI linked state associations. Several Democratic lawmakers all but said as much.

https://www.manufacturedhomeli...

Like millions of other Americans, I interact with a wide range of people and professionals. Among the questions I may ask when talking to a professional is how much consolidation and monopolization impact your profession? Many immediately begin to share examples in fields such as medicine, HVAC, automotive, recreational vehicles (RVs), conventional housing, manufactured housing, groceries, and so on.

Fewer employers means fewer places some person can turn to get a job. That in turn means lower pay for tens of millions of Americans. The article linked below deals with those issues in more detail.

https://patch.com/florida/lake...

Reich has made several useful points. But Reich, a Democrat, often fails to mention that Democrats have become the party of more big businesses and more billionaires. Who said? How about a former Democratic Party candidate for president, Congressman Seth Moulton.

https://www.manufacturedhomepr...

Buffett, Gates, and dozens of billionaires like them are routinely backers of Democrats. That doesn't mean that they may not give to certain "establishment" Republicans too. But to understand the nature of the problem, one must see it as it is, not as we'd like it to be due to bias or an agenda.

When someone is willing to look at the facts, it is difficult to deny that numbers of billionaires, big businesses, big media, big tech and officials in big government are Democrats or are backers of Democrats. As an example, Joe Biden's (D) vice president Kamala Harris (D) recently bragged she was endorsed by 88 corporate leaders.

As noted, Republicans get some of that donor support too. But Republicans get a fraction of the money that Democrats do. Who said? Leftist billionaire George Soros funded Open Secrets, among others. Soros himself is a Democratic megadonor.

Alex Soros has been groomed to take over for George Soros. This tweet (X-post) is by Alex.

That's a bold head fake by Alex Soros. It is an example of deception and misdirection in action.

As the graphic above illustrated, left-leaning actor Danny Glover said it well on the award-winning Shadows of Liberty. "It's not only a monopoly of wealth; it's a monopoly of information as well."

This is part of how the oligarchs can get and keep power.

They donate money to the politicians and to nonprofits.

They can get tax write-offs for their donations to an array of nonprofits.

Those nonprofits can in turn be tools for advancing their own interests.

Hanne Nabintu Herland made important points on this topic of the intersection between governmental, big business, big media, and big tech power.

There are numerous ways that the system is rigged. This notion that monopolists are sabotaging markets and that we need more robust antitrust enforcement is part of the solution. Obviously, it would make no sense to vote for someone who is the puppet of big business, big tech, and big government. The left-leaning New York Times reported earlier this week the following.

Former President George W. Bush's (R) vice president, Richard "Dick" Cheney (R) was often blamed as an architect of the decades-long Middle Eastern wars the U.S. was deceptively manipulated into entering. People across the political specturm villified Cheney, including Democrats. But suddenly, when Cheney endorsed Kamala Harris for president, Cheney's endorsement is soemthing that Harris said she is "proud to have." The military industrial spy complex that Democrats have so long hated has now been publicly embraced by Kamala Harris (D).

Several media outlets, not just right-leaning Fox News, have reported this same point.

Let's sum up. There are illusions created of billionaires who give money to charities that makes them seem like good guys. But Peter Buffett and others have said that those charities often fail to do what they claim to do. Much of the mainstream media is owned in part or influenced by ad dollars that keep this corrupt nexus voices on the left and right have worked to expose. Kamala Harris rails against billionaires that support Donald Trump (R), including Elon Musk. Trump does have billionaire backers. But Harris and her running mate Gov. Tim Walz (MN-D) have more billionaire and corporate backers that Trump and his vice presidential running mate Senator J.D. Vance (OH-R). The backers of Harris include the military industrial spy complex and Dick Cheney.

What do those backers of Harris want? Some of her big donors have openly said they want less antitrust enforcement. So, this isn't a mere theory. These are evidence supported realities. Curious, isn't it that Democrat Robert Reich and the Harris-Walz campaigns have failed to mention some of these details? More on this in the days ahead.

The system is rigged by the wealthy and connected and monopolistic moat methods are part of how that is accomplished. This isn't a Democratic or Republican problem, it is an American problem. A signficiant number of people across the political spectrum believe that antitrust enforcement is critical to breaking up the power of the oligarchs. So it is no wonder that Harris donors don't want tough antitrust enforcement.

https://www.manufacturedhomepr...

Voting is underway in several states. Vote wisely, because besides antitrust efforts, the best thing that can occur is to put people into federal, state, and local offices who are willing to uproot this apparent corruption that created inflation, open borders, made the housing crisis worse, and so on. To learn more, see the linked reports. ###

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> HUD Admits Decades of Delay-Finally OK Multi-Family Manufactured Homes

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> Realtor? Journalist? Affordable Manufactured Home Production Jumps

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> Blankley-Goodbye American Dream? Only 10% Polled Can Buy a House; But

> A Brief History of Labor Day and Modern Insights for Employees and Pay

> Waiting for Fed Rate Cut Before Buying a Home? Experts Say Think Twice

> Frank Rolfe-Special Interests ‘Don’t Want to Solve Affordable Housing'

> TARK-‘I’m a Teen and Know the Solution to Affordable Housing Crisis’

> Renting? Rent too High? Odds Are DOJ Suit vs RealPage Matters to You

> New-Certified “Half Price Homes” - Affordable Housing Solution Redux

> Solution: “Would-Be Homebuyers Need 80% More Income Than 4 Years Ago”

L. A. “Tony” Kovach and his family live in a manufactured home on private property in Winter Haven, FL. He is the co-founder of ManufacturedHomeLivingNews.com and ManufacturedHomeProNews.com, trade publications serving segments of the manufactured home industry. Having worked in several segments of the manufactured home industry for over 3 decades, Kovach is a widely acknowledged and often praised expert on manufactured housing.

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

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