The Sun Journal editorial Oct. 29 perfectly exemplified this country’s level of uncertainty. It’s very hard to figure out who is to blame for the present crisis because people have grown up in a world defined by left-right, Democrat-Republican, capitalist-progressive values.

But the world is not simply black and white.

The editorial almost hit the nail on the head when it listed those to blame.

Yes, both Democrats and the GOP have dirt under their fingernails – but not most. Investors, credit raters, bankers and other corporatists are to blame.

This isn’t a left-right conflict – it’s a top-bottom one, and the top just won a big victory with the $700 billion bailout. It goes against both capitalist and progressive ideals, yet a majority of Congress (including both major party candidates) passed it. That’s indicative of the power the rich-elite have.

How could any member of Congress fully read and comprehend the implications of a 451-page bill, drafted and pushed by corporate lobbyists, in less than seven days?

The shock tactics need to end. The recipients of the bailout are hoarding and wasting the money, and the inevitable inflation of the bailout will hurt the public.

Voters need to elect officials who can hear the voices of the average layman beyond the din of corporate lobbyists who have inundated Washington since the 1940s. To fix things will take courage to shift paradigms and challenge the rich-elite who wield so much power.

Jeremy Keith Hammond, Auburn