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I'm not "from" Chicago, I'm a transplant from Iowa. Been living outside of Chicago in the far southwest suburbs since 1977. I work in the city and commute there daily. Ironically, I work right across the street from the CBOT and the Federal Reserve on the corner of Jackson and LaSalle.

I can't tell you why so many of the traders and frankly, so many in financial services support the Democrats. As recently as the mid 1990's Chicago was the banking capital of the U.S. when the bank banks here were bought out by NYC & Boston based banks, then Wall Street took over CME, CBOE, CBOT.

I hate to say this, but the bank I work for which just so happens to be the last Chicago based bank is riddled with huge Obama supporters --- including our Board of Directors, CEO and more. Thankfully I'm not on the business side of the bank where those people are, I'm in I.T. firmly ensconsed in I.T. Leadership and there aren't very many Obama supporters in the same side of the bank I'm in.

I can tell you that in Chicago there is no such thing as a meaningful Republican party. For that matter, that's largely true in all of Cook County which is DOMINATED by Democrats and has been for at least the last 60 years, probably longer.

The Democrats control everything. If you're not a registered democrat and you want to do business in Chicago --- forget it. Not gonna happen. Even if you're a registered democrat and you vote democrat in Chicago, unless you're hooked into the Democrat party and have a long history of financially supporting "the party" ... you're not going to do business until you pay up.

The Unions (mostly the IBEW, Pipefitters, Carpenters and Teachers) are the "muscle" behind the Democrats. The Teachers unions here in Illinois specifically have a lock on the Democrat party. Whatever the Teachers unions want, they get. Bigger pensions? No problem. Forget the fact they're not being funded and if they were, the taxpayers here would be CHOKING on our income AND property taxes but the Teachers Unions look at the Democrats as guaranteeing their way of life, taxpayers be damn'ed.

The Government worker unions are the same. They also have a lock on the Democrat party, and they have the judges in this state on their side too. The last few attempts to fix the state pension mess were overturned by the State Courts as un-Constitutional and no one seems to know how (or want to ...) fix the stupidity in our State Constitution which guarantees state government workers very generous pensions.

In this state, it's all about going along to get along. We are the epicenter of "pay to play" and everything Obama does has its roots in Chicago Political Corruption.

Chicago is the blueprint for fascism: Government and Business in bed together, screwing the little guy at every turn.

Sound familiar? Same thing is happening in Washington DC now that's been happening in Chicago ever since I can remember. I've been here since October of 1977 when I left home in Iowa at 17 and struck out on my own. Sometimes I wish I never came here.

Thanks for your feedback.

The thing that strikes me is the anti-capitalist or Democrat support that comes from hard core floor traders when you talk to them outside of their work.

The Floor Trader is or was the epidimy of Capitalism and by extension, human nature.

I’ve been trading securities and been deeply involved since the early 1990’s. And while many things have changed, human nature doesn’t.

I’m reminded of a great book by Mark Richie, a legendary commodities trader.

“God in the Pits”

I highly recommend it, even for those that are not traders.