By Doug Hahn
Central City

The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 was passed by Congress to prohibit abusive monopolies. Unregulated monopolies charge higher prices and suppress competition! Nebraska native William Jennings Bryan was a Populist/Progressive presidential candidate in 1896. Populists were alarmed at the concentration of industrial wealth in a few hands. It is the collusion of monopolies, and their lobbying to influence government policies/laws to their benefit. To the U.S. attorney general, President Bush, senators, and Congress men/women: "Why haven't you enforced the Sherman Antitrust Law?" Upon your election, you have taken an oath to uphold our Constitution and to protect our system of checks and balances. A new movement of change seems to be happening in America!

Polls indicate that over 70 percent of Americans feel our country is going in the wrong direction. People are concerned about their economic future. An example of current monopoly collusion is in the oil industry. They are lobbying against current legislation (HR 5351). The House approved $18 billion in new taxes on the 5 largest oil companies ($1.8 billion per year over 10 years). The vote was 236 for to 182 against. This tax revenue would provide tax breaks for wind, solar, other alternative energy sources and energy conservation. Those companies earned over $123 billion in record profits last year! This legislation also would rescind prior tax breaks. You mean those companies that just made record profits, and they are getting tax breaks? Why has our government allowed the Exxon/Mobil, Chevron/Texaco, Conoco/Phillips, BP/Amoco, Arco, and Royal Dutch/Shell mergers? Gas has increased from $1.38 in 2000 to over $3.00 today. Crude oil in 1998 was trading at $10 per barrel to over $110.00 per barrel today. Is there collusion taking place? Why haven't our antitrust laws been enforced? President Bush plans to veto this legislation if necessary. The White House stated: "Singling out the oil companies for higher taxes would reduce the nation's energy security rather than improve it and lead to higher energy costs to consumers and business." Haven't they noticed the price of oil and gas since they have been in office? I wonder how much Bush and Cheney have invested in the oil industry?

Monopolies in many industries have eliminated competition and off-shored our jobs. Corporations' only objectives are profits. Forget the families that are affected and lose their jobs and health insurance. Now they can't get it due to prior health conditions! Your economic stimulus plan will benefit U.S. corporations who are producing those goods in China. Are there Americans working in those factories in China? It is crazy to think that 69 percent of our (GDP) economy is from consumer spending. Our economic base must be manufacturing. By the end of 2008, our country's national debt will be over $10 trillion! Your share will be $33,000. Since 2000, the national debt has increased $4 trillion! The national debt will be 67 percent of our GDP. That percentage is economically unsustainable.

We're now having a credit crisis. Why were sub-prime mortgages allowed? Did the banking industry influence policy? Home values are declining with foreclosures. Inflation is increasing. Stagflation is when our (GDP) economy declines while (CPI) inflation keeps increasing. Mr. Bernanke, are you going to lower the fed fund's rate to 0 percent? After today, it is 2 1/4 percent, one year ago it was 5.25 percent. What about retirees? They depend on savings for retirement income. Did you ever think your economic policy is not working? Isn't the Federal Reserve nonpartisan? Why didn't you tell President Bush and Congress that the Tax Reduction Act of 2001 and 2003 was fiscally wrong, especially during war? It has been a failed economic theory of "trickle-down supply-side economics." The current economic facts solidify those failed economic policies!

I am concerned with the economic state of our country. We need to become watchdogs of our democracy. Our democracy represents all Americans and not a select few of the privileged elite. The Sherman Antitrust Law needs to be enforced. If you agree with this law to limit corporate power, we as citizens must demand enforcement. (IRS Tax Filings) Did You Know: Top one percent own 34 percent of U.S. wealth, The top 9 percent own 37 percent, thus the top 10 percent own 71 percent of all U.S. wealth! The bottom 90 percent of Americans own just 29 percent! These percentages of wealth distribution are the highest since the roaring 1920s. What happened during Hoover's presidency? The populist new movement in America was entitled to reflect the past history of our country. History repeats itself over time. If you study the populist movement during that period, you will find many similarities that are happening in our country today. Change happened then, it must happen today!