It took a near meltdown of the economy and the single most naked example of corporate welfare to do it, but the people of America are furious.
They are mad at Wall Street for lacking the willpower to earn its fortunes modestly and with the good sense not to let its collective greed nearly drive the global economy off a cliff.
They are infuriated with the nation's elected leaders and their top advisers whose policies or negligence allowed a culture of "casino capitalism" to grow unchecked.
They are angry that these same leaders shoved a $700 billion bailout onto their backs. We think it was necessary to approve the plan, but the people - like us - are angry that it came to such a necessity, and that Washington did nothing to prevent the problem.
They are incensed that now they have to pick from two presidential candidates who have yet to offer any real departure from the business-as-usual of Washington, D.C., that created such a god-awful mess of things.
In California, people were upset with the elected officials long before the tanking of the economy. Partisan fighting in the state Legislature resulted in a budget that was irresponsible and 85 days late.
And if the people are not mad at themselves, then they ought to be for allowing elected officials to get away with so much, for so long. But they don't have to take it anymore.
From one end of the country to the other, people are fed up with the state of government at City Hall, in their state capitals and Washington, D.C. And in four weeks, they will have an opportunity to not just get mad but to get even. If they turn that anger into action, City Hall, Sacramento and Washington might never be the same.
The first step is to register to vote. In California, residents have until Oct. 20 to get registered.
The next step is voting. Whatever one's party, bent or affiliation, large numbers of unexpected voters terrify politicians. ... And collectively we can use our numbers to shake up the political class so deeply they won't recover for a few election cycles. Don't like what legislators have legislated? Then you might want to vote against incumbents. If you're a Democrat, vote for a Republican; if you're Republican, try a Democrat for once. Why not? Could things be much worse?
Do whatever you can to make sure that the political class stops taking voters for granted. Until the people turn their anger into action at the ballot box, we will continue to get leaders who are disconnected from their constituents.
This editorial first appeared in the San Bernardino County Sun on Wednesday.
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