By David Rahni, New York

The Americans, who with the rest of the world feel betrayed and in dismay, have, by and large, lost confidence in their government and the so-called competitive capital enterprise system. The economic calamity, inflicted on them and the rest of the world, was brought about by their own government's deregulation, lack of oversight and excessive tax cuts for the corporate super rich with the empty promise of dividends trickling down. Moreover, Wall Street's criminal culprits in collusion with the misconduct of government ideologues, has caused the sudden disappearance of capital in the tens of trillions of dollars. This, in turn, has led to a deep sense of distrust, disappointment and insecurity that is unprecedented in modern times.  According to independent surveys, all branches and levels of government, especially the Executive, and the corporate and financial sectors have received the lowest confidence ratings of all times from the general public.

Many of European nations, such as Sweden, with a population and economy 1/30^th that of the U.S., has just provided a $225 billion dollars bailout to jumpstart their economy; others will have to give additional monies in trillions of dollars in the dire hope of turning their economy around. It is estimated that by the time this crisis is fully resolved, optimistically in about five to ten years, the quality of life, our democratic principles and national security will remain undermined. Especially the people in the third world on whom such economic losses will be leveraged through forced concessions, will immensely widen the gap resulting in more global crises. Domestic crime rates, i.e., suicides and homicides, grand and petty thefts, family abuse and divorce will steadily rise for sometime.

The full criminal prosecutions of the corporate/government "52" culprits of the current catastrophe, whose (in-) actions have led to economic terrorism making our national security more vulnerable than any other despicable foreign terrorist act, is due now. We then need a truly multi-jurisdictional approach devoid of greed. It should require each citizen to live within his or her own means, a leaner and more efficient and responsive government that provides more proactive fiduciary oversight for corporations and financial institutions, subject them to more regulations and tax levies worldwide, and a comprehensive revitalization of national infrastructure. All of these measures should collectively be guided by the principle of sustainability and intergenerational equity.

About the author: David Rahni is a professor of chemistry and environmental science at Pace University, and adjunct professor of dermatology at New York Medical College (www.DrRahni.com       nrahni@pace.edu)

... Payvand News - 10/30/08 ... --