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By Ken Brosky
Friday, Jan 25 2008, 01:09 PM
Funny how, just two years ago, there was
little to no talk about "The Economy," as if the wage disparities that
have been occurring since the Reagan era weren't worth talking about,
as if the accrued debt from working-class Americans wasn't a problem,
as if the skyrocketing health care costs and low-wage jobs were simply
an effect of a healthy "Economy."
What's changed so far this year? I'll tell you exactly what's changed: the rich are getting pinched.
Now, all of a sudden, it's a massive issue. Money is falling out of the
hands of the wealthiest one percent and now we're suddently facing a
crisis. I've got news for our government: this has been a crisis ever
since Ronald Reagan took office, ever since he began applying free
market policies like cutting taxes for the wealthiest of the wealthy in
order to let it "Trickle Down" while raising taxes for the rest of us
and shutting down as many government programs as possible, including
the Department of Labor which now almost always sides with
corporations. And then Clinton pushes through "Free Trade" that cuts
American jobs and forces the rest of the working class to compete with
desperate third-world individuals who are more than happy to work in
sweatshop-like conditions for dollars a day simply to survive in their
deregulated economies pushed through by the World Bank and the
International Monetary Fund.
Conditions have been getting worse
since the 80's, and now anytime anyone suggests actually taxing the
rich at a fair level, conservatives demonize them as "Socialists."
Anything that could actually level the playing field, any regulations
or fair taxes on the rich are demonized immediately by conservative
think tanks who pretend to be defending "Freedom."
"Freedom!"
they say, "Freedom for the market to regulate itself! Freedom for
individuals who reject BIG GOVERNMENT, Freedom for all!"
Who are these people who claim to fight for freedom? Why, they're the freest people on the planet:
Rich. White. Men.
When
they cry "Freedom!" they mean only freedom for themselves and their
friends, to accumulate more wealth and push down more workers. The free market has failed miserably a number of times since the 70's,
which is why these conservative think tanks focus on demonizing all
criticism as "Socialism" and shove the word "Freedom" down our
collective mouth without a spoonful of sugar.
Now all of a
sudden the market is stumbling and the rich are losing money. And NOW,
only now, it becomes a problem. I've got news for Bush and the
Democrats: I'm taking my rebate and paying off my debt ... let this
corrupt economy continue its freefall. You think this is bad? Just wait until the security bubble bursts. The Bush administration has spent close to 1 trillion dollars propping up the military industrial complex, pouring money in that doesn't provide a return on investment (like, say, a new highway or better schools). You think this is bad? It's gonna get a lot worse.
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