There are only three things citizens want from government.

1.) protection

2.) something for nothing

3,) to reap where one has not sewn

The proper role of government is to administer justice and this falls under protection. Government providing protection is taken for granted. Every now and then there is an initiative to bolster the military but not that often.

Virtually all who approach government seek something for nothing or want to reap where they haven’t sown. Special sales people, the best in the world are hired to seek something for nothing or to enable their clients to reap where they don’t sow.

So what are the dumb strategies? Certainly nothing the upper 1% is doing is dumb. We all know that getting something for nothing is not possible but it is possible to come real close. The upper 1% do come real close. Commandeering the Federal Reserve to run up stock prices at the expense of the rest of the country provides the rich with more income than the poor get from all of their programs put together.

The poor never ask for anything but they do get enough to keep them from rioting.

Rank and file party members are the ones with the dumb political strategies.

Everything the government does happens because of pressure from outside the formal political system. Both Republicans and Democrats hold onto the fantasies of getting something for nothing or reaping where they don’t sow. They expect to achieve these things by working within the system when they are completely powerless and have not representation in congress.

Both groups would be better off if they focused on stopping the rich from using government to exploit everyone else. It is in fact possible to come very close to getting something for nothing from government. It is also possible to make billions reaping where one doesn’t sow. But only the rich have the political power to control government from outside of the formal system.