Economy killers: Inequality and GOP ignorance — By failing Econ 101, Republican leaders failed the country and repeated the errors that caused the Great Depression — By Dr. Paul Krugman from Salon.com

America emerged from the Great Depression and the Second World War with a much more equal distribution of income than it had in the 1920s; our society became middle-class in a way it hadn’t been before. This new, more equal society persisted for 30 years. But then we began pulling apart, with huge income gains for those with already high incomes. As the Congressional Budget Office has documented, the 1 percent — the group implicitly singled out in the slogan “We are the 99 percent” — saw its real income nearly quadruple between 1979 and 2007, dwarfing the very modest gains of ordinary Americans. Other evidence shows that within the 1 percent, the richest 0.1 percent and the richest 0.01 percent saw even larger gains.

By 2007, America was about as unequal as it had been on the eve of the Great Depression — and sure enough, just after hitting this milestone, we plunged into the worst slump since the Depression. This probably wasn’t a coincidence, although economists are still working on trying to understand the linkages between inequality and vulnerability to economic crisis.

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About Thom Prentice

White, male, educated, comfortably middle class [but now poor], and born in the United States—in short, a privileged citizen of a predatory imperial nation-state within a pathological capitalist economic system. (Direct steal from Dr. Robert Jensen, UT-Austin)***** Engaged in Direct Non-Violent Resistance to entire system, but from a below-the-grass-roots level***** Pro-Democracy Advocate and Global Warming Activist. Facebook Page: Thomas Prentice***** WhiteGuy, Intellecty'all, Symbologist [for those who like Dan Brown and The DaVinci Code], Deconstructioneer, Scribbler, Scrivener, Authentic Journalist, Reader, Thinker, 14 year cancer survivor just finishing yet another year of chemo, high school teacher, editor, and college prof, Ph.D. - UT-Austin - 1995. "Dr. Democracy", Return to 'The Customer Is Always Right' Capitalism Advocate. Shameless flirt ***** Asker of awkward and inconvenient questions, what they do NOT tell you is far more important than what they DO tell you. Dog person. Failed parallel parking. ***** There is no conscience in Capitalism. Democracy should rule Capitalism but Capitalism should NEVER rule Democracy. Without Economic Democracy, political democracy is useless and worthless. GWM. ***** Prone to telling off people who need to be told off in the fine tradition of my grandfather. I'm waiting for a face-to-face with the Michele Bachman/google Santorum/Eric Cantor and Paul Ryan types. Also with Vichy Democrats and oil-funded enviro groups. Gay Incorporated is useless. Post-partisan and post-ideological. Used to dance with his shirt off. ***** Not necessarily post-Capitalist in the Authentic Adam Smith way but certainly post-Capitalist in the THATCHER/REAGAN/MILTON FRIEDMAN/AYN RAND way.. Our economic and social arrangements need to be changed but not just from one ideology to another. Let talk about and create new options for social arrangements. Les Miserables. ***** Karl Marx was wrong about a lot of things but he was spot-on about how Industrial Capitalism causes people to become alienated and about his 'labor theory of value' which shows why/how Capitalist thieves steal the value of a person's labor. A person works so many hours or days for s/himself and the rest of the labor is "free" and therefore the value goes to the Capitalist One Per Centers as profit. Mars Attacks. ***** Just documenting signs of the looming apocalypse -- or rather, apocalypsii / TURN OFF THE TV.

Comments

Economy killers: Inequality and GOP ignorance — By failing Econ 101, Republican leaders failed the country and repeated the errors that caused the Great Depression — By Dr. Paul Krugman from Salon.com — 1 Comment

  1. The GOP isn’t ignorant, They have a plan to subjugate the 99% in favor of the 1%. “Put the wealthy in charge”. After all they are the ones financing the political campaigns we trust to tell us how to vote.

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