Power

Progressivist believed that power came from the bottom up. I think that this can be true but also Can be false. Let me explain. Money=Power. The more money you have, the more influence your opinions have. The more money you have the more opportunities you have to make more. If I could take out an interest free loan for $3,000,000 I could set up a successful company and repay the loan to start making a profit. If you already have that much money to spend on a company then it is a simple investment that may or may not pay off. The point is that a person making $100,000 annually can't afford to take that risk and therefore the person who can has more of an opportunity to make more money. Just like power, money corrupts. Plenty of politicians sellout. Rod Blagovich is a recent example. He offered an open senate seat for the right price. Almost everyone could always use a few thousand more dollars. Politicians are no different. If Money=Power then the 1% are far more powerful than the 99%. If you ask me that sounds like power coming from the top down, not the bottom up. This statement of power being at the bottom and us giving it to elected officials is also true. No politician wants to make an unpopular decision. If they do they could lose their job next election season. This is the pinnacle of the power coming from the bottom up. Politicians are guided by the voters will because if they decide to do something the masses don't agree with, they lose all their power. It is a funny thing. We give the politicians power, who in turn give us power, and then we give them power again. It's like a game of power hot potato. Except everyone wants the potato but if they hold it too long then they are out. I believe power comes from the top down and the bottom up.