America: The First Poor Rich Country

[volstork]

https://eand.co/half-of-americans-are-effectively-poor-now-what-the-c944c518db6a

American poverty — a middle class falling into ruin, the majority of people now effectively poor — is what gave rise to today’s problems: Trumpism, extremism, fascism, theocracy. It’s what drives religious fervour — save me, someone! It’s what ignites the spark of racial hatred all over again.
And until and unless this problem is addressed, my friends, in a tough and gentle and sane way, America is going to stay where it is. People that really understand political economy have a saying: “capitalism implodes into fascism.” That’s because it produces mass poverty, not riches, decline, not upward mobility — and the new poor then turn on everyone, neighbours, friends, allies, values, morals. If that sounds eerily like America today…then you should be able to see America tomorrow, too.

Interesting read, especially in light of the familiar Santayana quote, "Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it."

[Surrogate]

1. From Bertolt Brecht

Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are.

[mountain grammy]

2. Excellent read. Thanks for posting.

This got me too:

There’s a place where pride becomes hubris. Where stoicism becomes vanity. Where self-reliance becomes ignorance of the common good. Americans are at that place right now, in this moment.

[volstork]

3. Thank you for calling attention

to that passage. When "good values" are taken too far, they become liabilities. We are headed for a fall unless we pull back from the edge.

[mountain grammy]

5. Agree!

We're on a cliff.

[roamer65]

4. We will find out just how poor we truly are after the coming dollar crisis.

Seriously, there will come a time when no one wants our greenbacks. It’s coming soon.

[democratisphere]

6. A billion dollars worth nothing is equal to one dollar worth nothing.

Zero will be the great equalizer.

[Initech]

7. Interesting fact about my home town: Highest debt ratio in the nation!!!

WHEW!!! WE'RE NUMBER ONE! WE'RE NUMBER ONE! WE'RE NUM... oh wait.

https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2019/06/07/yorba-linda-tops-list-of-highest-debt-ridden-california-cities/

[LibDemAlways]

13. The car debt says it all. Same thing in my

Ventura County suburb. Too many people driving around in status symbols they can't afford. Keeping up with the Jonses is an obsession.

[Initech]

15. Oh it's insane here.

There's McLarens, Ferraris, Lamborghinis, I've even seen a Rolls Royce or two. I also see crazy expensive custom Mercedes and BMWs, Range Rovers, Dodge Chargers, giant pickup trucks, I could go on and on. I just drive a Nissan Altima.

[LibDemAlways]

23. Mine is a 3 year old fully paid for VW, lost in a sea of Audis, Beemers, Benzes, Lexuses

and, yes, the occasional obscenely ostentatious Lambo or Bentley. I simply shake my head and laugh at the knowledge that my car serves the same function as theirs, and does so much more economically. It rolls along the ground on roads shared by all.

[Yavin4]

8. This is why we need a political party, not just presidential candidates, dedicated to reform

The Democratic party has become more about electing one person to the presidency instead of building a party dedicated to reforming the system.

[whathehell]

10. +1

[DFW]

9. The author thinks this started with us?

How about France, 1789? Wealth distribution was far more unequal then, but France was a very rich country at the time.

Immortalized (not for the first time, and with a little poetic license) here:

[whathehell]

11. Lol!

[DFW]

12. Many immortal lines in that song

If you had been a nicer king
We wouldn't do a thing
But you were bad, you must admit
We're gonna take you and the queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit

[volstork]

22. He actually mentions Weimar Germany as being quite similar,

and we all know how THAT turned out...

[DFW]

24. Die Weimarer Republik fell apart for reasons that were heeded when modern Germany was set up

In Weimarer Zeit, as it is called here, any tiny fraction who got a few votes got a member in the Parliament. Hundreds of tiny parties claiming legitimacy sprang up, and nothing remotely like a majority or a coalition was possible. Thus the NSDAP took power with 33% of the vote. Today's Germany has built into their constitution that no party gets representation in the parliament unless it gets at least 5% of the vote, and that was a direct result of historians studying the causes of the Weimarar Republik's failure.

[sandensea]

14. Argentina used to have that dubious distinction.

Ever since their experience with Bushonomics in the late '70s - similar to (though of course on a much smaller scale) and a full 30 years before our Dubya derivatives debacle.

At least we have our Fed - and the almighty dollar - to bail us out of these huge heists. They didn't.

[Pepsidog]

16. Brilliant and sad comment

[gopiscrap]

17. yup

[Ron Obvious]

18. Nearly half the population can't come up with $400 in an emergency

Because they're living paycheque to paycheque. Let that sink in. That's about a small car repair bill as far as I can tell.

[Xolodno]

19. Not the first....

....Think France holds that distinction, which resulted in the French Revolution. After that, it was Russia. The results afterwards, were none to pleasant, for rich or poor.

[ansible]

21. British Empire was considerably worse

Industrialization really created this modern fucked up world we have today of class divisions and extreme inequality. At the height of its power in the 19th century when it ruled much of the world, Britain had masses of urban poor far worse than anything we have today.

[Wounded Bear]

25. Yep! Industrialization and unbridled Capitalism...

work hand in hand. Reaganomics are working fine at the task it is designed to do, make rich people richer at the expense of the middle and lower classes.

[smirkymonkey]

20. K&R