Corruption creep

Clemenza, consigliere to the Corleone family in the film "The Godfather" says to Michael after a mob war erupts: "Don't worry...these things happen...about every coupla years or so. It gets ridda the bad blood!" It appears our federal prosecutors list of over two dozen recent indictees in Illinois politics reveals the blood-letting is upon us. And, as all Illinoisans know, it has happened here before, and as a matter of fact, it will happen again. And... the melt down is at the same time a national one. Why?

Two reasons.

First, on the local level, Illinois history has ever and always been about bribery, real estate wheeling and dealing, the selling of offices, making big money, and taking advantage when you can. Recall Sandburg's poem about the brawling city of big shoulders. Illinois politics is the politics of Chicago. The players have always learned how to play the game in Chicago. Neigboring states like Wisconsin or Indiana have no such places as Chicago. Chicago, and hence Illinois, is the power bottleneck of the this entire nation. From the very beginning, by virtue of its location, it is strategic to the politics of transportation, manufacturing, commodities, and commerce -- all the sooty, dirty-hands work of our nation that New York is too cosmopolitan to stoop to, Los Angelas is too whacked out to recognize (except in the LAPD), and Washington D.C. needs. Political blood-letting takes place precisely for the same reasons as it once did among the crime families. Power gets lopsided -- somebody's cut is too big. Somebody has to take a fall.

Second, the blood-letting is part of the system itself. Right now, as in 1930, the average citizen has reason to doubt every banker, every broker, every politician, every CEO. Just as in the Great Depression, we have found out, in the words of Studs Terkel, that the "big boys ain't so bright" after all. It is natural to feel that our basic system has failed us once again. However, it would be the same were America socialist, communist, a monarchy, or even something else!

Greed runs in HUMAN cycles, regardless of governments, Greed and ethics run courses inverse to one another. A generation or two accomplishes marvelous feats and the wealth and power of their nation grows. They spoil their children, who then come to expect advantage and want even more wealth. The prevailing social culture of shared values slowly becomes replaced with individual greed, and competition for status and power. The media feed the frenzy with images of the super-rich. Entertainment lavishes billion dollar "salaries" on the sports gladiators of the day who may be too stupid to even graduate high school. It's OK though, it's a market...like everything is a market. Those who serve others become viewed as naive suckers who don't really rate: teachers, policemen, firemen, nurses. Religion sells itself out for a political stake, and leaders suddenly don't need to have divinity school credentials any longer. Race and ethnicity is about confrontation and jockeying for power. Media exhalts in reporting this circus, not the real news, and journalism itself starts to be about "marketing," which is even taught in public school. Presidents are elected on promises to special interests. The government thinks it can throw its weight around anywhere in the world and the result will be "shock and awe."

And so here we are again. It will all happen again in Illinois, and it will all happen again in this nation, regardless of whether our country's pitifully short flirtation with a republic/democracy actually lasts even ten percent as long as the empires of Egypt or Rome or England.

Truth is, we are all learning about ourselves, who WE are behind closed doors. "F" this, and "F" that; screw those people because I deserve more than they do; I should get seven figures because he is; I can run up the charges and tomorrow be damned; everybody cheats; I'm right and you're wrong; it's not gambling...it's "gaming"; everybody else is doing it; we deserve more because of a hundred past grievances I/we have decided exist; gimme, gimme, gimme more. And if I decide I have to have more, I will demand somebody just print up some more money and bail me out. And if they won't do it, I'll elect somebody like Rod, ....who will get it done for me!

Public school teachers, have been watching corruption creep for the past 30 years as their students and their spoiled Gen X and Gen Y parents demand high grades, sue more often, and shamelessly 'work' the schooling system. Cops have watched it infect public behavior. The coming decade of fall-out from corruption creep won't surprise any of them, although they, like all of us suckers, will be the ones hurt most.