Recent news is illustrative of just how intertwined corporations are with the business of the

Republic. President Biden, it still sounds weird saying a new president's name, doesn't it? It's like

writing last year's date on a check even though it's March. Yes, I'm that old. I write checks.

Anywho, President Biden ordered a targeted strike in Syria to avenge a wounded soldier and fallen contractor.

In Texas, the private grid gave out during a severe cold snap, causing hardship throughout much

of the state and forcing Ted Cruz to flee to Mexico. And of course, we passed the tragic

milestone of a half a million dead Americans due to COVID-19. So what's the common thread here?

We hold the government accountable for societal ills, but somehow the real power brokers,

complicit in our failures, go largely unseen and unpunished.

We employ private mercenaries in our war efforts, and they operate under the same rules

of engagement as our military.

We have a patchwork energy system in the country in the hands of for-profit entities that value shareholders over customers.

And our embarrassing response to a pandemic is a painful reminder of the failings of a health

care system in private hands.

If you're frustrated and defeated, you have every right to be.

It's not supposed to be this way.

But the fact of the matter is we no longer trust the government to deliver the most basic

of services.

And so when things go wrong in private hands, we tend to blame the government.

So we put our faith in private institutions under the almost universally held

belief that the public sector simply cannot operate on par with the private sector. This simple

premise, upon which our modern military, economy, and society are built, is simply not true.

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