What is Wilson talking About?

[MooNiNite]

“Since I entered politics, I have chiefly had men's views confided to me privately. Some of the biggest men in the United States, in the field of commerce and manufacture, are afraid of something. They know that there is a power somewhere so organized, so subtle, so watchful, so interlocked, so complete, so pervasive, that they better not speak above their breath when they speak in condemnation of it.”

― Woodrow Wilson

Edited June 17, 2015 by MooNiNite

[idiot_stimpy]

I'm sure its the same power the King and Queen of France saw in their last moments.

Edited June 17, 2015 by idiot_stimpy

[9th]

[kevin_wallbridge]

excerpts from

The New Freedom

a book by Woodrow Wilson, 1961

Pg. 20:

In most parts of our country men work, not for themselves, not as partners in the old way in which they used to work, but generally as employees,--in a higher or lower grade,--of great corporations. There was a time when corporations played a very minor part in our business affairs, but now they play the chief part, and most men are the servants of corporations.

 

You know what happens when you are the servant of a corporation. You have in no instance access to the men who are really determining the policy of the corporation. If the corporation is doing the things that it ought not to do, you really have no voice in the matter and must obey the orders, and you have oftentimes with deep mortification to co-operate in the doing of things which you know are against the public interest. Your individuality is swallowed up in the individuality and purpose of a great organization.

 

It is true that, while most men are thus submerged in the corporation, a few, a very few, are exalted to a power which as individuals they could never have wielded. Through the great organizations of which they are the heads, a few are enabled to play a part unprecedented by anything in history in the control of the business operations of the country and in the determination of the happiness of great numbers of people.

Pg. 24:

Since I entered politics, I have chiefly had men's views confided to me privately. Some of the biggest men in the United States, in the field of commerce and manufacture, are afraid of somebody, are afraid of something. They know that there is a power somewhere so organized, so subtle, so watchful, so interlocked, so complete, so pervasive, that they had better not speak above their breath when they speak in condemnation of it.

 

They know that America is not a place of which it can be said, as it used to be, that a man may choose his own calling and pursue it just as far as his abilities enable him to pursue it; because to-day, if he enters certain fields, there are organizations which will use means against him that will prevent his building up a business which they do not want to have built up; organizations that will see to it that the ground is cut from under him and the markets shut against him.

Pg. 29-30:

one of the most significant signs of the new social era is the degree to which government has become associated with business. I speak, for the moment, of the control over the government exercised by Big Business. Behind the whole subject, of course, is the truth that, in the new order, government and business must be associated closely. But that association is at present of a nature absolutely intolerable; the precedence is wrong, the association is upside down. 

 

Our government has been for the past few years under the control of heads of great allied corporations with special interests. It has not controlled these interests and assigned them a proper place in the whole system of business; it has submitted itself to their control. As a result, there have grown up vicious systems and schemes of governmental favoritism (the most obvious being the extravagant tariff), far reaching in effect upon the whole fabric of life, touching to his injury every inhabitant of the land

 

A little context.

[Brian]

Notice that Wilson is calling for corporatism to be developed under the control of a powerful centralized government. This thread ran through his philosophies and policies, which favored things like using education to mold a compliant workforce, working to ensure the ruling elite would be predominantly Ivy Leaguers, and advocating for eugenics (not to mention putting most of the dominoes in place for the Great Depression, giving the bankers control of the nation's currency, throwing the US into WWI (after winning the election by promising he would keep the union out...))

 

He was also actively working to establish a single global government.

 

An interesting character but not a good one, in my humble opinion.

[idiot_stimpy]

If only the people realized their power, and they all banded together and outnumbered their oppressors, it would be 1,000,000 to 1.

[MooNiNite]

dang i thought he was talking about the Greys or something intense like that

[Aetherous]

dang i thought he was talking about the Greys or something intense like that

 

Yup something like that.

[dust]

If only the people realized their power, and they all banded together and outnumbered their oppressors, it would be 1,000,000 to 1.

 

The power that drives corporations is the same power which has always driven the ruling heads of human society (monarchs, dictators, priests.. gods). That is the people. The people's willful ignorance, their acceptance of tyranny, and in fact their hidden desire to be governed. People are their own oppressors.

 

People want something or someone to blame for all the nasty things that happen, but everyone is complicit. Everyone participates in it, daily. Almost everyone on this forum does. Most of you drive cars, buying petrol from Shell and BP and other huge, damaging corporations; most of you eat meat and dairy and eggs produced in corporate factory farms, and various crops traded by huge corporations (agriculture makes a bigger contribution to deforestation and pollution than any other process); all of you are using a computer or phone right now, and I suspect that for most of you that involved buying from a major corporation and using electricity and other services provided by huge corporations. Blah blah.

 

Nobody's innocent..

[idiot_stimpy]

What option do I have. I only see death to end this madness.

[idiot_stimpy]

dang i thought he was talking about the Greys or something intense like that

Maybe the ruling elite are getting their strings pulled like a puppet by certain unknown off worldly factions. I hold it as possible.

[dust]

Do your best not to take part in the maddest of the madness?

 

Realize that it's all a game?

 

Realize that you do have power?

[MooNiNite]

Does that context actually say what he is talking about? It could just be two separate discussions

[MooNiNite]

Yup something like that.

What do you think he is talking about?

[Brian]

Does that context actually say what he is talking about? It could just be two separate discussions

Yeah, Wilson believed that we need a small group of intellectual elites to act as the new ruling class, which would manipulate populations and economies and would make "Big Business" (his capitalization) its slave. He was lamenting that the then-current government lacked sufficient authority and clout to be able to prevent Big Business from preventing the individual from charting his or her own course and he strove to give government the authority and clout to take over the job of preventing the individual from charting his or her own course. He apparently didn't see the irony.

[idiot_stimpy]

We have become corporate slaves, like a cog in the machine.

[thelerner]

Things like the military industrial complex that was growing out of control.    Lets remember too the early 1930's conspiracy where some leading industrialists had formed an embryonic plans to force Roosevelt to accept a new part of an executive branch that would acquiesce to them.   It was found out and disbanded early enough so they main players were embarrassed and not prosecuted. 

 

Random thoughts:

In the 1920's when Wilson was president the boogie man was anarchists. 

 

Politics is expensive and feed at big businesses trough.  What we consider corruption was mostly legal in the past.  And hopefully some of whats legal now will be considered illegal in the future. 

 

The book came out in 1960's where the communist scare was picking up major steam. 

 

I thought Kennedy was known for assembling the 'Best and Brightest' ie elite which turned into a everyone agreeing with each other which led to some disastrous policies.  So even letting the 'smart' guys rule has its problems.  Matter of fact I prefer pragmatists to idealists.

 

Idea who's time has come: strict term limits. 

 

I'd add: There's also a very human element to the 'things aren't as good as they used to be' paragraph.  In some ways it's not so much nefarious as possibly the reminiscence of every long time politician and business man and old person in general.. things aren't as good as they used to be- They know that America is not a place of which it can be said, as it used to be, that a man may choose his own calling and pursue it just as far as his abilities enable him to pursue it; because to-day, if he enters certain fields, there are organizations which will use means against him that will prevent his building up a business which they do not want to have built up; organizations that will see to it that the ground is cut from under him and the markets shut against him."

 

The above might be a song sung by every generation.  Its a popular tune repeatedly loudly by all sides.  Its the rallying call for most of the Republican candidates, gimme that olde tyme America.. that sweet spot between June 3rd 1954 and July 8th 1955. 

Edited June 17, 2015 by thelerner

[3bob]

before I opened this string I thought you guys were having some fun with Wilson,

 

   

 

 turns out this is a serious string...

Edited June 17, 2015 by 3bob