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| (Illustrative Only) Grandpa Todd joined the hypothetical Feather Party of independent voters because he wants to protect rights, pass on generational American values, resilience of communities, and opportunities for the younger generation which may be dwindling. With so much money on top it seems as though some may have forgotten why they were elected. New ideas are needed. Shhh don't say that too loudly as you might go on a partisan's list. There may be reasons why that is becoming more common as well. Freedom of speech.🤫 Would a larger independent party help reverse the trends? Would it keep people a little more focused on serving normal people if leaders were drawn from communities? *the hypthothetical Feather Party is a philosphical discussion, doesn't exist at this time, is made of independent voters that tip partyline votes, focuses on the young generation, encourages new ideas, seeks to connect democracy to communities, doesn't work with special interest, limits campaign donations, and each member is encourage to vote their conscious based on a shared decision making matrix. Some will support one thing and others will support other things. A place for intellectuals, logical thinkers, scientists, and those who want a shared sense of purpose. |
It is important to note that the presence of trends does not imply causation. The information below would need to be thoroughly scrubbed, reviewed, and supported with deeper analysis to reach precise conclusions. However, from a high-level perspective, and given the variety of sources from which the information is drawn, the likelihood that these observations are at least broadly accurate appears reasonably strong.
Organizations must find solutions to problems and that starts with voting in the best and brightest and not the most partisan, special interest vetted or connected here or internationally.
Philosophical Questions:
1. Could broad basec capitalism improve economic performance and trust?
2. If wealth is being concentrated is it possible that a broader based capitalism could help your communities rebuild?
Feel free to make your own conclusions as ultimatey each of us must be able to take in information and decide for ourselves. We don't need others tellings us what we need as we are an educated intelligent people. In earlier times when we all lived in a village and worked toward shared benefit we could not afford to not exlore adaptive ideas. Or rely on a few top down perspectives that impact all of us but haven't necessarily panned out well. Let us try bottom up management for a change. 🤷 Vote your conscious.
Several notable trends over the past 20 years include:
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Increasing trade deficit
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Rising concentration of wealth
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Declining trust in government
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Increasing mergers and acquisitions
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Increasing perceptions of corruption
PACs on the rise
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Growing ideological partisan voting
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Declining economic freedom
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Increasing movement of wealth overseas (..likely underreported due to private data.)
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Rising national debt
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Declining perceptions of freedom of speech
Broad-based capitalism, in theory, may help reverse some of these troubling trends. Maybe or maybe not? Achieving this may require a larger independent voting bloc that is less influenced by money in politics and the partisan ideologies often tied to that money. From a broad-based perspective, more wealth generation should occur within the hands of average Americans and within local communities.
Broad-based capitalism is closely related to broad-based capital markets, meaning a wider distribution of investors (i.e. small and medium) and capital across many industries and across firms of different sizes. i.e. the firms in your community. The concept focuses on maximizing market participation and wealth creation across the full spectrum of businesses, communities, from microenterprises to large corporations.
This approach could also influence innovation by engaging a broader base of human capital (See how the concepts are related to maximize benefit to the most amount of people? We cannot afford to leave any demographic behind.). Research has suggested that smaller firms often generate more innovation per employee than larger firms. (Small and Large Firm Innovation) We can tap that power to rebuild.
Encouraging wider participation in entrepreneurship and capital formation may therefore strengthen innovation across the economy. That could mean higher household income levels as decisions and income are closer to the people who earn it. Innovation in the development of human capital is especially important because, when widely distributed throughout society, it can create cascading “butterfly effects” that support long-term economic and social progress. In Theory.
Trade Deficit
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Data Source U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
|
Concentration of Wealth Top 1%
 |
| Federal Reserve Distributional Financial Accounts data |
| Year | Share of Total U.S. Wealth Top 1% | |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 26.9% | |
| 2009 | 28.1% | |
| 2014 | 30.4% | |
| 2019 | 30.4% | |
| 2024 | 30.8% | |
| 2025 | ~31% |
Trust in Government
 |
| Data Source Pew Research Center |
Pew Research Center regularly asks whether people trust the government to do what is right “always or most of the time.”
| Year | % Trust Government |
|---|---|
| 2004 | ~36% |
| 2010 | ~24% |
| 2015 | ~19% |
| 2019 | ~17% |
| 2021 | ~24% |
| 2024 | ~22% |
| 2025 | ~17% |
U.S. M&A Deals by Year
 |
| Dealogic/SIFMA and industry reports |
Dealogic/SIFMA and industry reports.
| Year | Number of Deals |
|---|---|
| 2005 | 8,214 |
| 2006 | 10,265 |
| 2007 | 10,696 |
| 2008 | 9,067 |
| 2009 | 7,315 |
| 2010 | 10,148 |
| 2011 | 10,562 |
| 2012 | 12,228 |
| 2013 | 10,223 |
| 2014 | 10,632 |
| 2015 | 10,509 |
| 2016 | 9,774 |
| 2017 | 10,390 |
| 2018 | 8,327 |
| 2019 | 9,870 |
| 2020 | ~11,000 |
| 2021 | ~16,000 |
| 2022 | ~17,000 |
| 2023 | 15,643 |
| 2024 | 13,697 |
Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) – United States (2001–2025)
 |
| Data Source |
Scores are on a scale of 0 More Corruption –100 Less Corrupt. Data Source
| Year | CPI Score |
|---|---|
| 2001 | 76 |
| 2002 | 77 |
| 2003 | 75 |
| 2004 | 70 |
| 2005 | 76 |
| 2006 | 73 |
| 2007 | 72 |
| 2008 | 70 |
| 2009 | 75 |
| 2010 | 71 |
| 2011 | 71 |
| 2012 | 73 |
| 2013 | 73 |
| 2014 | 74 |
| 2015 | 76 |
| 2016 | 74 |
| 2017 | 75 |
| 2018 | 71 |
| 2019 | 69 |
| 2020 | 67 |
| 2021 | 67 |
| 2022 | 69 |
| 2023 | 69 |
| 2024 | 65 |
| 2025 | 64 (latest) |
Number of PACs in the U.S. by Year (1990–2024)
PACs counted include all federally registered committees making contributions to congressional candidates (i.e., connected, non‑connected, corporate, labor, etc.) — this count does not include Super PACs and hybrid PACs separately, though some are included under nonconnected categories when they report. Data Source
| Year | Total PACs Registered |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 2,869 |
| 1992 | 3,067 |
| 1994 | 3,099 |
| 1996 | 4,518 |
| 1998 | 4,593 |
| 2000 | 4,496 |
| 2002 | 4,573 |
| 2004 | 4,864 |
| 2006 | 5,012 |
| 2008 | 5,220 |
| 2010 | 5,512 |
| 2012 | 7,311 |
| 2014 | 7,548 |
| 2016 | 8,666 |
| 2018 | 8,663 |
| 2020 | 8,855 |
| 2022 | 9,271 |
| 2024 | 9,233 |
Party Unity (Percent of Votes That Were Partisan) by Year
| Year | House (%) | Senate (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | ~52 | ~67 |
| 2004 | ~47 | ~52 |
| 2005 | ~49 | ~63 |
| 2006 | ~54 | ~57 |
| 2007 | ~62 | ~60 |
| 2008 | ~53 | ~52 |
| 2009 | ~50 | ~72 |
| 2010 | ~40 | ~79 |
| 2011 | ~76 | ~51 |
| 2012 | ~73 | ~60 |
| 2013 | ~69 | ~70 |
| 2014 | ~73 | ~67 |
| 2015 | ~75 | ~69 |
| 2016 | ~73 | ~46 (note: incomplete/estimated) |
| 2017 | ~76 | ~69 |
| 2018 | ~59 | ~50 |
| 2019 | ~68 | ~54 |
| 2020 | ~70 | ~64 |
| 2021 | ~63 | ~79 |
| 2022 | ~53 | ~83 |
US Economic Freedom Score (approx. 2006–2026)
| Year | Score | Global Rank | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | ~82 | ~4 | Free |
| 2010 | ~78 | ~9 | Mostly Free |
| 2015 | ~76 | ~12 | Mostly Free |
| 2018 | ~75.7 | ~18 | Mostly Free |
| 2020 | ~76.6 | ~17 | Mostly Free |
| 2021 | ~74.8 | ~20 | Mostly Free |
| 2022 | ~72.1 | ~25 | Mostly Free |
| 2023 | 70.6 | 25 | Mostly Free |
| 2024 | ~70.1 | ~25 | Mostly Free |
| 2025 | 70.2 | 26 | Mostly Free |
| 2026 | 72.8 | 22 | Mostly Free |
Estimated U.S. Personal Wealth Held Offshore (2005–2024)
| Year | Offshore wealth |
|---|---|
| 2005 | $0.9T |
| 2006 | $1.0T |
| 2007 | $1.06T |
| 2008 | $1.1T |
| 2009 | $1.2T |
| 2010 | $1.4T |
| 2011 | $1.6T |
| 2012 | $1.8T |
| 2013 | $2.0T |
| 2014 | $2.2T |
| 2015 | $2.5T |
| 2016 | $2.8T |
| 2017 | $3.1T |
| 2018 | $4.0T |
| 2019 | $4.1T |
| 2020 | $4.0T |
| 2021 | $4.1T |
| 2022 | $4.2T |
| 2023 | $4.2T |
| 2024 | ~$4.3T |
U.S. Federal Budget Deficit by Fiscal Year (Approximate)
Data Source
(Figures are in billions or trillions of U.S. dollars (USD))
| Fiscal Year (Oct–Sept) | Federal Deficit |
|---|---|
| 2005 | $318 B |
| 2006 | $248 B |
| 2007 | $161 B |
| 2008 | $459 B |
| 2009 | $1,413 B (~$1.4 T) |
| 2010 | $1,294 B (~$1.3 T) |
| 2011 | $1,300 B (~$1.3 T) |
| 2012 | $1,077 B (~$1.1 T) |
| 2013 | $680 B |
| 2014 | $485 B |
| 2015 | $442 B |
| 2016 | $585 B |
| 2017 | $665 B |
| 2018 | $779 B |
| 2019 | $984 B |
| 2020 | $3,132 B (~$3.1 T) pandemic spike |
| 2021 | $2,772 B (~$2.8 T) |
| 2022 | $1,380 B (~$1.38 T) |
| 2023 | $1,690 B (~$1.69 T) |
| 2024 | $1,830 B (~$1.83 T) |
| 2025 | $1,775–$1,780 B (~$1.78 T) |
| 2026 (est.) | ~$1.55 T projected |
Freedom of Press/Speech
Scores: 0 = best, 100 = worst.
U.S. trends (approximate rank and score):Year Score Rank (out of ~180) 2005 15.5 20 2010 17.2 22 2015 19.0 41 2020 23.3 44 2024 25.1 45
| Year | Score | Rank (out of ~180) |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 15.5 | 20 |
| 2010 | 17.2 | 22 |
| 2015 | 19.0 | 41 |
| 2020 | 23.3 | 44 |
| 2024 | 25.1 | 45 |
