The influence of “big money"  is far too large within the framework of our democratic process: The mere fact that it is contributing to a deformation of the democratic process, has been noted again and again. This criticism is at the root of “campaign reform” in the U.S.,  as it was at the roots of attempts to reform the financing process on which all major party organizations depend in Europe. The extent of the damage done by “big money”  when funneled to the parties and candidates most accessible to the whims and wishes of “big business” becomes clear when we look at the example of soft money and the engineering of the recent Bush victory in the U.S., the example of money-laundering and millions and millions paid illegally to the Christian Democrats in Germany to keep Chancellor Kohl in office for 16 years, or the riddle posed by the STRAW MAN of Big Business (and the "Mafia"? - itself now a part of "Big Money") in Italy: How Did a Man Without Considerable Means Assemble the Most Important Private Television and Media Empire in Italy, in Order to Build A Political Coalition from Nothing and Become Prime Minister?

URBAN DEMOCRACY 
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