How Money Has Become The Enemy Of Our Society Essay

In the United States, public policy is shaped by multiple factors, from average citizens voices in elections to interest groups and organizations. In their study, “Testing theories of American politics”, scholars Benjamin Page and Martin Gilens explore the impact of average citizens, the economic elite and interest groups have on the passage of public policy. Additionally through their, Page and Gilens(2014) have found “that economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on U.S. government policy, while mass-based interest groups and average citizens have little or no independent influence” (Pg 535). This means that when it comes to the creation of public policies, rich people and groups

From the very first elections held in the United States, there has always been a strong link between money and politics. During the first elections in the late 1700’s you had to be a white male landowner over the age of 21 in order to vote, meaning that you had to have money in order to have your vote counted. It seems today that we cannot go a day with out seeing campaign finance in the media, whether or not it is through advertisements for politicians in the media or asked to donate money to help let your favorite candidate win. Because campaign finance has always been on the back burner of political issues, there has hardly been any change to the large influence money has over the election process and politicians. While money has it’s

In the book Money and Class in America written by Lewis Lapham, the way Americans look at money is exposed. It compares other nations view on monetary value against that of the Americans. It is a fact that we place more value on money than anything else. This book illustrates the corruptness of the “American Dream” as it focuses money as the “currency of the soul” and through the dream, men remain free to rise or fall. Their life is the product of the effort and the decisions put forth by them.

Americans only see few ways to affect real change on government because politicians are too reliant upon large donations. Groups contribute money, and later on receive a kickback of bill that favors them or supports their positions. “Candidates who raise lots of money say it indicates broad support. Candidates with little money point out that voters, not donors, decide elections” (2012 Presidential). Candidates spend large amount of time fundraising, which decreases people’s confidence in the government’s ability to do their

Does money control today's society? The Younger family is an African American family in Chicago in the 1950s. The family lives in a small and ratty one window apartment. They are an “average” family who receives the proceeds from a $10,000 life insurance policy from the death of Walter Lee Sr. Everyone in the family has their own idea of what they want to do with the money, if it was up to one of them. The author's story setting is in the apartment surrounded by various conflicts, conversations and actions of the characters. The story line is only a couple of days, but in that time the author is able to show how poverty can have a negative effect on the Younger family.

The “Money as Debt” was created by Paul Grignon in 2006. It is the most fascinating video I have ever seen. Moreover, I am just amazed how much I have learned in just 47 minutes. This video describes how basic banking system works and answers the question where the money comes from.

It can be said that money is power in the United States, and this is brought out in the essay, “Class in America---2012” written by Gregory Mantsios. He says that even though many Americans do not like to discuss class, “it can determine where people live, who their friends are, how well they are educated, and what they do for a living” (Mantsios). Many Americans do not speak about class type, and most find it unacceptable (Mantsios). Unfortunately, we can see that there are laws that are built to help and better the wealthy, while it cripples the rest of us. According to the Economic Policy Institute, “The richest twenty percent of Americans hold nearly ninety percent of the total household wealth in this county” (Institute) Gregory Mantsios without reserve describes the majority of people are at a disadvantage in their social class, while the upper class is compensated.

In American society, wealth has played a particularly significant role in shaping the culture and standards set for our country. With every dilemma that has occurred, money was been an underlying deciding factor in the end. John.F.Kennedy makes this very clear in his statement on lowering the prices of steel, all the way Jennifer Price's take on people being obsessed with a money, even Scott Russell’s article on the status quo Americans believe determines one's happiness and success. All of these passages tie together to show just how money influences our very own society.

Within the past few years, the United States has become increasingly divided. Not only is this divide becoming more and more prevalent, but both legislators and civilians are also becoming more intractable. Many leaders in the Congress, in the Senate, and even in the White House are unwilling to work with leaders of different political parties simply because they do not want to seem as if they are faltering in their beliefs of their party’s ideals. Legislators choose to represent the interests of those who funded their campaign instead of lobbying for the best interest of their constituents. When lawmakers represent billionaires instead of average people, they become out of touch and the government becomes less “for the people by the people” and more “for the one percent by the one percent.”

Alyssa Battistoni makes some very good points in her article, “The Public Overwhelming Wants It: Why Is Taxing the Rich So Hard?” regarding how the wealthy have a big part in influencing the government and taxes. Her article makes valid points on how we, as citizens, under estimate the political influence of the rich and that we have a hard time understanding the magnitude of the economic inequality and the relationship it has with political power (Battistoni, 720). She states that many of the politicians themselves are in the wealthy category. This article shows the frustration Battistoni feels by the tone and wording she uses to make her examples such as when she states that we are getting caught in a negative feedback cycle as the rich

The main reason that large corporations are in dire need of money is simple, greed. Financial institutions went out and found people who wanted to purchase a house, but couldn’t afford it, because of bad credit reports, debt, income, etc. So the banks went out on a limb with these risky people, and loaned them “x” amount for the house. Banks were only trying to make some money off of the outrageous interest rates of the mortgages, because that’s what banks do, they make money. Now banks and other lenders did this type of business on a large scale. People loved the idea that they could go out and get a mortgage on let’s say a four hundred thousand dollar house, with a bad credit score and slightly above minimum wage salary. Can you see

Income inequality is a phenomenon that is undeniably real in our current world, and more specifically, the present United States. Canon describes how the gap between the elite and the poor has been consistently growing for many years and continues to widen (189). Whether the differences between the top and the bottom are a threat to current society is another story. Does income inequality undermine a democracy? Ray Williams argues that societies are strongest when they have a higher rate of equality while George Will challenges that inequality is the very basis of what make democratic processes. A. Barton Hinkle takes a Libertarian approach to the idea that inequality is threatening to democracy and how it can be fixed. Some threats that each article addressed were economic impacts, civility, and fairness. Overall, there is a definite need to evaluate whether the United States democracy is being threatened due to the continuous rise of the elites and the fall of the working class.

The power elite is able to exert power over society. The power elite’s control over politics demonstrates how inequality is functional. This validates the class-domination theory of power, which is distributed based on economic power. By controlling economic resources, the power elites political influence in government shapes law and those involved in government to the power elites benefit. In today’s American society these laws have impacted both the corporate community and the elite. Furthermore, the author’s portrayal of the elite displayed how the elite have control concerning choices in government policies, elections, and laws.

Everyone wants to live a happy life. Even those people that hate everything about everyone. The trick is how to get that wanted happiness. Is money a way to achieve this happiness? People, philosophers, professors, and ordinary, everyday people have been pondering this age-old question about the relationship between money and happiness and if money can buy happiness for a very long time. Much research and many surveys have been asked and performed by excited researchers and agog economists. A lot of experiments and presentations galore were rendered by inquisitive University professors and intrigued university undergraduates to provide useful data. As it turns out, money can and will buy happiness for everyone that spends it at the right time and on the right things.

Money is a precious thing and it can become challenging to not spend it immediately after getting it. It is crucial that this does not happen. There is no denying that money is an important part of society. The world revolves around money and without it, one? would not be able to function. In everyday life the average household will spend one hundred and sixty dollars daily. It is safe to say that money is an resource used daily. It is a tool that can be used to connect with other people or buy anything a person could want or need. Yet it is easy to spend money without realizing how much is really being spent. With only a few simple tips it will become much easier to save money instead of spending it on frivolous things. One’s hard-earned dollar should be saved, and simple tips such as using cash instead of cards, saving small change and only purchasing what one really needs are a few of many ways of doing this. The power of money can easily be abused and it is very important to make sure that a person is well informed on ways to save and spend money wisely.