For the sake of this short rant, we will consider those three words as one threat to America, for the conservation of space.

It’s time we all learned fraud, waste, and abuse (FWA) is not a new, momentary, correctable problem. In fact, we need to  admit we can’t “eliminate” it. We can just do the best we can to mitigate it.

America’s economy is a Capitalist economy. AI describes Capitalism as “an economic system where individuals or businesses own the means of production and make decisions about what, how, and for whom to produce, with the goal of generating a profit. Key features include private property, free markets, competition, and relatively limited government intervention”

As you read this description, did the term “government intervention” seem to be in the wrong sentence with the words “free market”? And how about the words “relatively limited”? There are two major ways governments can intervene in any economy, with the end result in both often more of a hybrid mix.

One is by proactively deciding “what, how, and whom to produce for”, and make those decisions before any production starts. Picture a government directed economy much like China and Russia. (Loaded with FWA, by the way.)

Two is by monitoring “what, how, and for whom to produce” after production, and then setting a regulation for further production. Picture a business making and selling poison as a health cure. After a few deaths, a government would (hopefully) stop that business and regulate the future manufacture and sale of poison. Plus truth in packaging and advertising.

Another ambiguous term is “free markets”.  What free markets want is to be able to get away with making and selling poison marked as a health cure, only stopping when enough consumers stop buying it due to “competition”, an innocuous term defining how consumers “learn” about the product’s real properties (death) from the “free market” activity and stop purchasing. Picture a “consumer group”, after “X” number of deaths, organizing and advising people not to buy the “health cure”.

Neat. Tidy. Understand? The Theory is easy to understand, when we add FWA, some realism, to the plot, things get muddled.

FWA has been around since cavemen (Cavepeople?). Picture one caveman (Lou) desiring the other caveman’s (Abbot) food. Lou points to the sky, Abbott looks up, and Lou swipes the mammoth rib from Abbot’s hands. Fraud. Or Lou has some tasty berries, and Abbot has another meaty rib. Lou offers the berries to trade for the rib. Abbot declines, so Lou throws the berries away. A female nearby (Phyllis) has neither meat or berries and goes hungry. Waste. (Yes, a female was used on purpose.)

Phyllis finds the berries, cleans them up, and offers them to both Lou and Abbott as “fresh”. This could be both abuse and/or fraud. Abuse comes from using something for bad effect or purpose, so we’ll say Phyllis is abusing the current fireside free-market system.

The real point is as long as human beings are involved in any economic system, FWA will be a companion and will factor in the system’s functions. Even in Communism’s directed system. FWA is historical, unrelenting, and maybe important? Like plecos (sucker fish) cleaning the aquarium?

What can be done about FWA? First, it is very, very ignorant of both the nature of man and history of capitalism to think you can root it out, entirely. Trump, Musk and DOGGIE say they are doing it, but all they are doing is throwing out the bathwater with the baby, and new bathwater will get just as dirty very quickly no matter what baby you wash in it. That’s life when money and power are involved.

Free Markets need regulatory activity to work best for the population. Free Markets work best with post-activity government intervention. It’s akin to weeding a garden, as long as the weeds don’t infect the regulatory system. But you know how weeds are…same as FWA.

As small government MAGAns, and Republicans look to shrink the government and regulatory intervention, all hell is going to break lose as man’s (better? Nooo) nature is given free rein. Trump and Musk, however, are not being ignorant of human nature and history, they are using it to their advantage. They know a small government and a diminished regulatory framework is good for Trump and Musk, and people like them. At least 5 pre-2025 government “interventions” in Musk’s potentially illegal activities are now moot, as there is no one and no framework to investigate him. Ditto Trump.

And a large part of America still thinks Trump is good for them. Those are the people ignorant and unaware, with no grasp of mankind’s FWA history.

FWA can be caught and corrected, but never completely eliminated as long as man (and maybe a woman or two) see dollars signs and political power in whatever system they think they can manipulate. Know that, understand that, and don’t look away when it happens. In the meantime, profound waste has become normalized: compare professional sports salaries to your local teachers/cops/firemen. The Free Market at its finest.

And please, don’t fire the weeders. They are our only hope.