Chicago, Crook County, Illinois -OR- A PhD in modern Politics

Politics- n,v,adj,adv(from the gutteral neanderthal. poly; many + tics; blood sucking parasites) 1.) A closed-loop system. 2.)An adjunct of governance whereby the victors distribute the spoils proportionately.

The operative narratives explained in the following video capture the essence and difference between traditional Chicago-style Ward politics, Chicago versus Downstate and Chicago versus the surrounding metro area varieties over time, how they have mutated, how they spread and why the practices have been tolerated over time.
(Note the repeated references to statute of limitations for individual acts committed.
At some point a wily persecutor prosecutor will attempt to overcome that limitation by defining these acts as part of an ongoing criminal conspiracy.)

What enables the Chicago way has traditionally been in actually providing a visible, tangible benefit to the constituencies. Increased competition for the spoils has diluted and in some cases eliminated said benefit. Determining the actual ratio of benefit to cost would require untold resources to calculate. This pursuit has created a niche industry of NPOs, PACs, Foundations and Think Tanks tapped into the same revenue streams. This has given rise to proliferation of SIGs, Lobbyists and Umbrella organizations whose sole function is to provide cover and suppression fire.

Rather than causing an uproar, these tactics have been cleverly altered to PROVE the need for even more additional revenues. Routinely, "benefits" are withheld temporarily from an essential service in order to coax, convince and wring more revenues out of already endangered revenue streams. Sin taxes are the preferred method, which is why over time there are more sinners. Which in turn conflates the impression of a civilization losing its morality, which in turn diminishes the severity of political pettiness while providing righteous crusaders fodder to extract more from their own flocks to carry on the battle.



If you think politics in your locality are immune to infection. Think again.
What these three are explaining is practiced everywhere with only minor deviations.
Bi-partisanship is a myth with which any stray progressiveness is eliminated.

"It's always easier to sell them some shit, than it is to tell them the truth" -Baba Fats (S.Silverstein)