“The world is broken, and we believe entrepreneurs are the only ones who can fix it.”
If you’ve spent any time on our site, especially our About page, you’ve probably come across those words a few times. It’s a long-held belief Vanessa and I share, and it’s behind every decision we make for Mayniax Branding.
Recently, I had a one-on-one chat with someone I network with. We were just talking when, as arrogant as I’m sure it reads, I used “The world is broken, and we believe entrepreneurs are the only ones who can fix it” as an example of a company’s “why.” My fellow networker asked me to elaborate.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“You always say ‘the world is broken, and you believe entrepreneurs are the only ones who can fix it.’ What do you mean by that?”
And I let out a looooooonnnnnnng sigh. And then decided to write about it.
The World Is Broken
Vanessa and I can’t talk government with each other. It’s not that we disagree on how things are run – we actually agree on most points – it’s that the current state of it pisses us off so much that when we talk about it, it doesn’t take any time for one of us to start fuming. Which, as you can imagine, is pretty unbecoming for a couple of fun-loving maniacs. But, I’m gonna type about government for a bit anyway, just to give you a few of our own “the world is broken” examples.
According to Newsweek, in 2003, our government sent Tommy Thompson to fight a proposed recommendation from the World Health Organization. WHO’s heinous recommendation? Wanting to tell the world no more than 10% of their calories should come from sugar. According to CBS News, two Senators – a Republican and a Democrat – helped fight to get Thompson to stop the World Health Organization, in part, by extorting them. The United States of America, backed whole-heartily by the sugar lobby, threatened to pull funding in the amount of $400,000,000 if the report were published. So, instead of looking out for We the People, our government looked out for They the Sugar Lobby.
And then there’s net neutrality. Who truly thinks opposing net neutrality is good for We the People? And who started opposing it in the first place? I don’t know, and don’t wanna dig that far back – I’m already fuming – but I did find a chart here that, as of 2014, showed who was spending the most to crush net neutrality: Verizon, Comcast, AT&T, basically the usual suspects. They the Lobbyists.
In Michigan, home to General Motors, Ford, and Fiat Chrysler, it’s always been illegal to sell cars from the manufacturer directly to the customer. Because who wants a free market, anyway? According to Consumerist, when Tesla started knocking on Michigan’s door – arguing that, because their sales could be done online, they weren’t violating the law – the Michigan Auto Dealers Association did what any good lobbying group would do: they got the law amended. “…an amendment to existing law was quietly tacked on to an unrelated bill at the last minute and passed through the legislature with no resistance.” With online shopping being such a huge part of how we spend our money, how exactly does that amendment serve We the People?
A friend of mine once asked me, “Why do you hate politics?” The only thing I could think to say was, “Because I understand politics.”
Vanessa and I aren’t cynical people. We’re really not. In fact, I personally think the default setting for people is “good.” I think when folks get into government, they really want to help us. They really want to help We the People.
I just think they’re outgunned.
I love the way our government was set up, but I hate what it’s become. I no longer see a government, at any level, that’s about We the People. Instead, I see a government that’s about They the Lobbyists.
But not all hope’s lost! Vanessa and I believe we can actually make a difference. In fact, we believe we can meet them on their lobbyist level.
Vanessa and I believe, after all, if you can’t beat ’em…
If This Were a TV Show
This is the part where, if this were a TV show, I’d say, “Tune in next Thursday for the next exciting chapter in my ‘The World Is Broken’ mini-series!”
But, since it’s not a TV show, tune in next Thursday for the next exciting chapter in my “The World Is Broken” mini-series!
Stay gutsy, gang!
To read Part 2, click here.