Democracy dead? Lobbyists ruling America? Lobbyists the new "Unseen Hand" of capitalism? Sadly yes.
And here's why: Ask any neuroeconomist, behavioral-finance quant, investment psychologist or other practitioner of the mysterious "science of irrationality" and they'll tell you that Americans have two self-sabotaging mental biases that killed democracy from within:"Denial" and "Magical Thinking" make us easy targets. Our brains are being manipulated by clandestine forces beyond our control. We can't see them or resist.
Yet we refuse to believe in this new Orwellian America. We prefer the world of magic, myth and illusion.
Yes, folks, democracy is dead. Oh, the illusion willbe kept alive in our history books, in the rhetoric of politicians, in the manipulated minds of America's 95 million Main Street investors. The propaganda machine works. Like a child's fairy tale, democracy has been deeply imbedded in our brains for decades; we prefer believing old, familiar stories. They comfort us, even when no longer true. The real democracy, what so many fought and died for since 1776, is dead.
Lobbyists now run America, own America, rule America. Forget the 537 politicians you thought we elected to the White House, Senate and Congress to run America for us. No, they're mere puppets, pawns for the "Happy Conspiracy," an oligopoly, plutocracy, cabal, monopoly all-in-one -- a private club of America's richest few on Wall Street, in Washington and in Corporate America.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=15038

In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln saidin the Gettysburg Address "that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."
However in 2006, there are literally thousands of lobbyists that directlyinfluence the policiesand actions of most branches of government for the corporations that thelobbyists represent. You may also know these lobbyists as political action committees (PACs), professional agenciesfor hire, or just private organizationsand individuals that want to influence politics.
The problem is that there are now more (and an increasing number of) lobbyists for corporations and businesses, than there are lobbyists representing individuals and private groups, such as churches, unions, and non-profit organizations. As a result, our government policies and actions are beinginfluenced more by corporations than people!
Furthermore, politicalcorruption from lobbying is becomingmore common. For instance, lobbying is typically performed on behalf of corporations that also make huge campaign contributions that are much larger than what individuals and organizations donate. Therefore, almost all politicians are stuck between deciding their need to solicit more financial contributions for their parties and their own campaignsversus being supportive of the people that they represent. As a result,political corruption appears rampant in most part of governments, because politicians appear to be more supportive of their financial backers instead of their constituents.
Several states, in the United States of America, have passedseveral Clean Elections laws to ensure that lobbyists gain influence by their persuasiveness of their arguments rather than through campaign contributions. It is now time to nationally (and even internationally) restrict or limit lobbyists and corporations from directly financing political parties and politicians, because politicians should notbe easily influenced from large contributions that corporations donate. As a result, please support campaign finance reform .
http://www.philforhumanity.com/Lobbyists_Rule_America.html

Campaign funding should be from a pool evenly distributed amongst all candidates, leveling the monetary playing field.

Donor lists should be readily available to the public so all voters can see who is funding the candidates.

Thirdly, lobbyists providing gifts or incentives to people in office should be investigated and prosecuted for bribery. Without the ability to directly provide campaign funding, they have no acceptable reason for giving anything to politician....even as a "birthday present".

It's one thing to "wine and dine" while talking business, but offering an expensive country club membership or a sweet deal on an expensive new car or whatever is unacceptable. It's the same standard in place for college athletes - why should it be any different for politicians?

Don't entirely agree with this. It is fact that the international bankers own America. However, it is important to note that the author is correct in that America as taught in the history books is long dead-replaced by a fascist police State bent on creating and maintaining a global empire and crushing the life out of the economy here. When the US dollar finally loses its place as the primary reserve currency, the parasite bankers will just pick a new country.

It's good you brought up Lincoln, as this gives us an opportunity to note his hypocrisy. Had it not been for Lincoln's insistence on maintaining an iron grip on the entire nation's economy in a very fascist way, the horrors we see today (economic and otherwise) would not have happened and we would still be using sound money.

Things That Will Never Happen..........

Campaigning should also focus more on broadcast debates and less on political advertisements. Those ads are a HUGE chunk of the campaign budget. Travel is also a large part in Presidential campaigns. However, fewer ads and more debates equals lower spending, free exposure, and greater discussion of issues.

But I guess we'll never see that either....Negative ads are just too effective.

in lobbying in Washington would be around 90,000 -- not including support staff.
OpenSecrets.org: Money in Politics -- See Who's Giving & Who's
http://www.opensecrets.org/
How It Happens: Lobbyists
http://m.youtube.com/watch?gl=IN&hl=en&client=mv-google&v=R2DUM6jVasw
CNN: Obama Appoints Goldman Sachs Lobbyist to Top Treasury Post, 1/28/09
http://m.youtube.com/watch?gl=IN&hl=en&client=mv-google&v=XtuIByPe7ic
Newt Gingrich Lobbyist? See For Yourself...
http://m.youtube.com/watch?gl=IN&hl=en&client=mv-google&v=-1fU5TvqiVY

what Democracy?
What Capitalism?

There is little argument today about whether or not there is a relationship between capitalism and democracy. Two great economists of the last generation, Max Weber and Joseph Schumpeter, detailed the linkage. Weber contended that democracy in its clearest form can occur only under capitalist industrialization, and that it had its greatest opportunity in a society which emphasizes individual responsibility. He stated flatly that history clearly confirms that modern democracy rose along with capitalism and in a casual connection with it.
Schumpeter was even more emphatic. He stated that modern democracy is a product of the capitalist process, and the two were mutually supportive parts of a rising modern civilization. Schumpeter was careful to point out, however, the tension between capitalism and democracy. He cautionedthat the means at the disposal of private interests were often used to interfere with the mechanism of competitive leadership. The Friedmans say that despite the advantages which flow from capitalism, the relationship between political and economic freedom is complex and by no means unilateral.
The essential nature of capitalism is social harmony through the pursuit of self-interest. Under capitalism, the individual's pursuit of his own economic self-interest benefits theeconomic self-interests of all others. The system means the complete separation of economy and state, just like the separation of church andstate.
Capitalism is the social system based upon private ownership of themeans of production. However, the primary premise of capitalism, the one that I consider most important, is that is based on individual rights. It is the only politico-economic system based on the doctrine of individual rights.
This means that capitalism recognizes that each person is the owner of his own life, and has the right to live his life in any manner he chooses as long as he does not violate the rights of others.
Contrary to widely held beliefs, capitalism is not a system which exploits a large portion of societyfor the sake of a small minority of wealthy capitalists. Ironically, it isactually socialism that causes the systematic exploitation of labor. Exploitation is inherent to the nature of socialism because individuals cannot live for their own sake, rather they exist merely as means to whatever ends the socialist rulers may have in mind.
This is where the Castrosalong history have failed.Castro was wrong in 1959, Castro is wrong in 2002.

Capitalism and democracy : friends or foes? | The Economist
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2007/08/guest_blogger_chris_coyne

EXCLUSIVE: Obama Campaign Refunding Money Donated by Federal Lobbyists
Jan 27 - President BarackObama's re-election campaign is refunding the donations of five registered federal lobbyists who gave to the committee last year, OpenSecrets Blog has learned. Some of these refunds were triggered after OpenSecrets Blog brought the contributions to the campaign's attention. The Obama campaign has pledged to refuse contributions from lobbyists, continuing a policy it set during the 2008 campaign.
SOPA and PIPA Spur Lobbying Spike
Jan 26 - SOPA and PIPA appear to have been very, very good for K Street. Companies that lobbied on the two bills spent at least $104.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2011, more than double the $49.3 million they laid out in the previous quarter, according to research by the Center for Responsive Politics.
Lobbying Expenditures Slump in 2011
Jan 26 - The nation’s economy may be slowly rebounding, but during 2011, the economic engine of K Street sputtered. Overall expenditures on lobbying were down for the first time in more than a decade, accordingto research by the Centerfor Responsive Politics.
Spending by Super PACs Shows Deep Differences
Jan 25 - Who's been funding the presidential super PACs since last June is largely a mystery,and will remain so until next week. But how the groups have been spending their money is a different story, thanks to legal requirements that expenditures over acertain threshhold be disclosed quickly. And the super PACs, just like the candidates they support or oppose, have shown deep differences in how they're allocatingtheir money to get their messages across, according to a Center forResponsive Politics analysis of the expenditures.
Meet the Bundlers Behind the Money
Jan 25 - No candidate on the Republican side of the aisle has yet to join President Barack Obama in voluntarily disclosing information about all of their bundlers, people who often receive special treatment for thelarge amounts of moneythey are able to raise. Learn more about what we know -- and don't know -- about the 2012 presidential campaign bundlers in this new infographic.
Full:
http://www.opensecrets.org/