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Tony Rubolotta

Unholy Trinity
October 1, 2009

Big business. Big labor. Big government. These are not entities in opposition but in balance, much like the three branches of the federal government. Each jealously guards its power from the other. They do not argue about acquiring power, but about how that power is divided or shared. Regardless of what any idealist on the Left may think, this is the inevitable ruling troika that socialism requires to govern and function in the future. Whether you choose to label this relationship as fascist, communist or socialist is irrelevant because above all it is totalitarian. Whether you choose to label its advocates Democrat or Republican is also irrelevant because above all they are elitists.

Big business makes a lot of noise about government regulation, but also lobbies for it because there are benefits in addition to immense contracts. Government regulation raises the barrier to new, competing ventures and puts many smaller to medium sized businesses at a distinct disadvantage. Most major American corporations have extensive internal bureaucracies of lawyers, accountants and technical specialists to deal with regulatory concerns. These people’s jobs depend on government regulation. It is not uncommon to find these corporate bureaucrats listed as advisors to panels and committees that promulgate regulatory rules and statutes.

Big business also lobbies for more centralized government control. In very practical terms, it is easier to deal with one very large government bureaucracy and a handful of politicians than with 50 independent bureaucracies and legions of politicians. Globalism is merely an extension of that concept. I’ve seen enough internal memos in my career advising employees to “write your congressman” about one bill or another that would take power from the states and hand it to the federal government. Big business doesn’t give a rat’s bottom about the Constitutionality of these bills. Apparently, our congressmen don’t either and big business is more than eager to support a Democrat or Republican, provided they share the elite vision.

Big business may also moan and groan about big labor, but those labor contracts also work to raise the bar to new competition. Big labor becomes an instant ally against competitors not using union labor and goods manufactured outside the country.

Big labor represents big voting blocks, money and muscle, so the relationship with big government is more easily understood and explained. Big labor, thanks to big government enjoys near monopolistic power in certain labor markets. The anti-competitive practices of big labor were long ago exempted from the Sherman Anti-Trust Act by its big government ally in the courts.

Big labor's invasion of the government sector formed a symbiotic relationship of two parasites feeding off the public host. Big labor in government has an inherent interest in promoting more big government to swell its ranks and increase its influence. Big labor will support like minded politicians, who in turn support big labor in government. The obvious benefits are overly generous labor contracts with overly generous benefits, political support and a built in advocacy for big government.

Big government is about money, control and influence, the very stuff big business and big labor can offer to the right people and get back at the expense of the taxpayer. From a practical standpoint, dealing with the few is much easier than dealing with the many. From the government bureaucrat’s standpoint, finding the balance between exercising power and restraint is the key to job security. Finding bureaucrats and politicians “in bed” with the businesses and unions they regulate is a natural consequence of the big business, big labor and big government trinity. It’s just a Big Club.

What I have described thus far is not socialism as we know it or the gullible on the left picture it, but more on the order of the corporate state, or fascism. Under fascism, the government doesn’t own property (or your labor) but dictates how you use it (or where you can work). Private property rights become meaningless with this arrangement. So where is this leading?

The public schools are the model to watch if you really want to prognosticate our economic and political future. The government run public schools are government owned businesses employing government labor unions. The management is anti-competitive and has the full support of the union on this issue. Wages are negotiated by employees of another government union that are unsurprisingly generous with public funds. The same government that operates these schools also raises taxes to pay for union support despite declining quality. The “customers” are more or less captive and the complaint department is managed by another government employee. Elected school boards find they are virtually powerless in the face of the government bureaucracy and government unions. The supposed public control of the schools is just an illusion.

The big business, big labor and big government trinity is not the result of some natural economic phenomena but of a creeping lust for power in government that has fostered big business and big labor as political partners. It is built on the deception that the “greater good” requires us to surrender some of our liberties to the collective run by the Unholy Trinity. A few liberties here, a few more there, and so on until there are no more liberties left to surrender. The problem that Conservatives face is not merely stopping the Unholy Trinity, but reversing the damage it has done.

About Tony Rubolotta
Tony Rubolotta works in the technology industry.