Lobbyist literally write legislation

Isn't it nice our big multinationals have such an in with our elected officials they literally get to write their own laws.
Don't you wish working americans could write their own laws?

http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpoli...obbyists-literally-write-the-bill?ft=1&f=1001
It's taken for granted that lobbyists influence legislation. But perhaps less obvious is that they often write the actual bills — even word for word.

In an example a week and a half ago, the House passed a measure that would roll back a portion of the 2010 financial reforms known as Dodd-Frank. And reports from The New York Times and Mother Jones revealed that language in the final legislation was nearly identical to language suggested by lobbyists.

It's been a long-accepted truth in Washington that lobbyists write the actual laws, but that raises two questions: Why does it happen so much, and is it a bad thing?

 

Money talks.......How do you think Healthcare became such a mess in this nation. Corrupt politicians and lobbyist. Look at the top lobbyist below.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...BI_XCD05zX_htTEmOar410w&bvm=bv.56146854,d.aWc


Of course, money never influences any vote...........never.

 

I've seen individuals and civic groups write bills and submit them to legislators. Not sure how this is a revelation, much less something to worry about...

 

Money is king over everything. It not only talks, it COMMANDS. Corruption is built in to the the system.

 

Corruption comes to mind. Me and my beer drinking buddies have less traction or influence.

 

Pharmaceuticals/Health Products $2,736,536,143
Insurance $1,917,937,669
Electric Utilities $1,798,769,183
Business Associations $1,566,710,966
Computers/Internet $1,500,422,588
Oil & Gas $1,473,325,316
Misc Manufacturing & Distributing $1,253,512,679
Education $1,249,411,486
Hospitals/Nursing Homes $1,161,400,581
TV/Movies/Music $1,137,803,605
Securities & Investment $1,091,004,285
Civil Servants/Public Officials $1,089,990,427
Real Estate $1,061,515,651
Health Professionals $1,033,651,263
Air Transport $975,803,645
Misc Issues $834,389,251
Automotive $791,736,213
Telephone Utilities $760,260,329
Telecom Services & Equipment $755,669,991

 

How many of those written by individuals and civic groups put us in a near depression?
Should we worry about some of them? Or none?

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Corruption seems to be a non concern for many. Not sure why.

 

Why...because the people you elect are too stupid to conceptualize, design, and place into legislation.

Why...because the people you elect are too lazy to even read the proposed legislation.

FYI...lobbying is not about 'multinationals'? Lobbying comes in a thousand different forms including those who lobby for children, for single mothers, for education, for the elderly, for the sick, for the mentally ill, for your local public TV and radio companies, etc. etc. etc.

Who should care how legislation is created as long as legislation positively benefits a majority of Americans...

 

When was the last time a multinational gave a rats arse about benefiting a majority of Americans?

 

Go to this website and browse through the names; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_multinational_corporations

What do you believe they all in have in common...something that is critical to their success? Well...the answer is a majority of Americans...

 

The only interest they have in a majority of Americans is their money. And how to extract the most with the least cost to them.
That is why they will get to write their own legislation, not to benefit Americans but to see how much money they can get from them, courtesy of the large federal gov't you probably don't like.

 

Once again, I point everyone to OpenSercrets.org and OpenCongress.org

Find your candidate, compare their voting and stances on issues to money they receive.

http://www.opensecrets.org/
http://www.opencongress.org/
And for fun, listen to politicians talking on CNN while browsing their OpenSecrets profile.

Puts a whole new light on their arguments.

 

If you were a business, your prime objective is to pay the bills, save some cash for growth, and enjoy some profits...duh...of course money is what drives the system! Just as money drives individual's decisions.

And these businesses cannot determine the market prices for all the goods and services so actually they have very little control...market prices are determined by consumers.

Most businesses have a goal of increasing or maximizing profits...do you see a problem in this? If you were a business owner...you would do the same.

Lobbyists and special interests and wealthy people, etc. can suggest legislation but none of them can pass legislation.

I am a capitalist and I am a business owner and I do not like government interfering in the private sector when the only reason is political games.

BTW...just imagine how well off Americans would be today if we had 1000 Microsoft's or 1000 Standard Oil's, etc.?

 

Profit margins set to "max" though, right? Not an actual working percentage, or anything like that, I'm sure. Just 'more'.

 

Why? Why would I have to "maximize" profits? If I can pay the bills, employees, have a salary, stuff some cash for a rainy day, why does the business need to "maximize" profits? Especially at costs that can ruin society. See great crash of 2008 for reference.

But they can write it and then get legislation passed. If it doesn't get passed, they buy the next guy in line so he can get it passed. Corruption. Someone already mentioned that.

Then you should worry about multinationals and their deep pockets. Because they will get legislation in their favor and try to regulate much cost to you and your small business.

I can't so tell me, how well off it we had than many of those 2 companies.

 

What is the purpose of managing a business if it cannot be efficient, effective, and profitable?

Why do 80 million Americans, including many in the lower class, most all in the middle class, who own stock or have retirement funds, etc. DEMAND the highest returns on their investments? As a CEO, when your shareholders demand higher returns, action is required to give them higher returns.

A CEO cannot control the prices of goods and services and cannot control the consumers; the only thing they can control is their cost of doing business. Products and services are innovated, a business produces and sells, and in the end there must be profits. If the CEO cannot increase prices and cannot make consumers consume, then they reduce costs. If there are no profits then they take more drastic actions or just close the doors.

Some companies earn more and some earn less 100% depending on the type of business and the economic landscape at any given moment...

 

If you are not maximizing profits then you are wasting money.

Society and business are completely separate entities...what a business does cannot ruin 'society' unless society is ill-prepared.

A lobbyist cannot pass legislation...they have ZERO votes in Congress.

My job is to manage my business and not worry about multinationals and conspiracy theories and politics...if I allowed any of them to impact me then that says I'm not in charge...and that would be my fault...

 

If you ask any corporate player, and you ask them "How much is enough?", their answer will be "never enough". Something wrong with that picture if you asked me. Efficiency, effectiveness and profitability is one thing. The relentless pursuit of MORE, simply for the sake of MORE, is another thing.
CEO's, by definition, are their to hack away at labor costs (mostly), and that's the first thing they do when they stroll in every other year...HACK the labor. That's just a fact. Paying people a decent wage ought to be a consideration of the CEO but, it is the opposite, in reality. Now, they WILL pay "management" sometimes whip everybody else into doing more for less but, that's usually only temporary.
Bottom line...if you can't pay a decent, fair and livable wage, then you shouldn't be in business AT ALL. Labor IS part of the cost of "doing business", and it needs to be 'profitable' for the laborer as well as the corporation. The reality is that, IT ISN'T.

 

So, unless you have cheap labor, you're 'wasting money'. Paying someone a decent wage is a waste of money, because it's MORE profitable to hire CHEAP labor, and force them to do MORE, for less.

"Impact ME". You just said a mouthful there, bro.

 

Yes, it is. There is no need for their meddling. We need to limit the areas government gets itself involved in so we do not have this kind of rent seeking behavior. Also constantly having to defend your industry against attacks by Congress is also wasteful. Every dollar spent on lobbying is waste in my book. A government with no power to spend money and create special privilege is one with politicians who dont have lobbyists knocking down their door. The growth of government in the last century and the growth of lobbying have gone hand in hand and it is no coincidence it is bound to happen.

 

It is the prime objective of a business owner or CEO or whomever managing a business to do so wisely...and this includes or mandates profits. If a company is not 100% efficient, then it is wasting money. Every step is taken to obtain the most value out of expenditures, and to be efficient and effective, being fiscally responsible, being profitable. It is stupid to hire 1000 employees when only 750 are necessary! It is stupid to purchase $1000 in materials when only $500 are necessary! It is stupid to have 500,000 square feet of facility when only 100,000 square feet are necessary! A great manager will look at every expenditure to make sure it complies with the prime objective.

I've been at the highest levels in the business world and current own a business and never once have I met a peer who only focuses on profits...never! Profits are absolutely critical but profits are derived by doing everything else correctly.

Labor costs are some of the highest costs in business so it's an obvious place to look for cost reductions. Labor can also be abused and inefficient, etc. so it must be closely monitored.

A CEO does not decide how much to pay people?? It's based mostly on supply and demand in the labor markets. A CEO is going to pay each employee whatever amount is necessary to meet the prime objective or they won't have any employees because they will work for other companies.

If you are part of a labor pool, who posses little education and few skills, and there are more of you than jobs exist, the wages are going to remain low. Why would a company pay these workers $20/hour when most will work for $12/hour and the competition is paying $12/hour? If we had one medical doctor in the USA that person could earn a billion$ per year; if we have 20 million doctors in the USA each will earn about $100K per year. IMO most all of those who whine about lower wages and unemployment have done very little to increase their workplace value...like extended education, more work skills...and instead just try to blame everyone else for their self-created miseries...

 

A company must hire labor commensurate with the products and services they are providing. Broken down into job positions, the company then must pay market price to obtain the proper employee for each job position. Obviously a person with an applicable college degree and good performance is going to earn more than a worker with no education and no skills.

Except in POLITICS...there is no such thing as a 'decent wage' or a 'living wage' or a 'minimum wage'...all of these are political BS.

 

Labor is literally the life blood of the business, and it should be treated with respect, just as those at the top want respect. Paying them as little as possible, and making them do as much as possible, with as few people is possible, isn't being 'efficient'. It's being GREEDY. Making two workers do what requires five, is greed.

The education argument is a farce too. It's just another way to force people to work cheaper, and that's ALWAYS the goal. CHEAP, CHEAP, CHEAP.

Remember, you get what you pay for. Keep kicking the worker who provides the profit in the balz, and eventually, you'll get kicked in the balz. I pray that corporate America, CEO's and the Mitt Romneys of the world, get kicked right in the balz, good and hard. They certainly deserve it, and every working stiff that gets kicked in the balz routinely by your profiteering corporate raider, every day, needs to kick back, and do the most damage possible.

Cheap, slave labor jobs are a dime a dozen. You're not losing anything by kicking them hard on your way out to the next sheet job.

 

No, they must not hire ANYBODY. They can outsource for pennies on the dollar. They can threaten their employees with layoffs, and demand MORE for less while looking for ways to outsource or reduce labor. When companies (like McDonalds) can make BILLIONS AND BILLIONS (of dollars), but have an HR resource to 'help you get on medicare' when you become employed there...something's wrong, friend. You defend it all you like but, it still stinks, badly.

 

You are not thinking in reality. If you have before you 100 unemployed workers, and you communicate to them that you only need 20 workers, no matter what wages you have in your mind to pay, you are going to pay what the 20 workers demand. If you were to toss out a number like $15/hour, 20 workers would immediately take you up, but then what happens when worker number 21-40 says they will work for $12/hour? Meanwhile back in realty-land, if your competitor is paying $12/hour, how can you compete by ARBITRARILY paying $15/hour? No matter the amount of pay, you will get the same amount of productivity and the same skills so how can you pay more than your competitor?

Whether a worker earns $8/hour or $80/hour, they are supposed to provide productive work for 8 hours per day, 40 hours per week.

Now I see your problem...you think education is a farce! You think workers should earn higher and higher amounts of compensation yet not need to invest in learning new skills or advancing their education and knowledge. You think workers who do take the initiative to learn higher skills and higher levels of education should not be rewarded for their investments. You are so whacked on this topic it is impossible to discuss it with you...