1980 was the final year of American governmental goodness. Jimmy Carter, a brilliant man with great intentions but surrounded by perhaps not the most experienced coterie of Washington insiders, tried to make government work for the people. He failed and sadly his failure lead to the day when the nails for our national coffin would be lined up and then pounded in one by one as the years turned into decades as the hysteria of the right sidetracked our nation.
From 1981 onward economics was replaced by politics—a similar thing was done in the Soviet Union look where that got them. The Republicans led by the demigod Ronald Reagan—truly a pragmatic conservative in comparison to the mindless leading the GOP today—put forth grand schemes like “supply-side economics” and began to do away with taxes for the super rich. He had child-like ideas that private businesses would invest in the US infrastructure.
Thanks to massive spending on the military, the economy began to expand; at the same time, the government led assault against the American workers kicked off in earnest. The American Worker was painted as lazy and spoiled despite being the most proficient in the world. As a result, companies were rewarded for moving jobs offshore. American workers began to lose their footing.
Regulations which used to protect the American citizen from the harshness of greed and the ugliest sides of capitalism—the “Jungle” was written help us not penalize us—were wiped off the books one by one. The government was telling big business: do as you want and when you get around to it give us campaign contributions and if you feel really giddy, hire some Americans—but the jobs were flowing away to China and other places.
Freed from paying taxes, the manufacturers, men and women of great fortunes, became addicted to record-breaking profits. And, when the American worker demanded normal pay and benefits, the factories owners, balked yet again and in greater earnest moved their factories off-shore. Please don’t get me wrong, many of these super-rich owners are “great, patriotic, God-fearing Americans” who contribute millions to the politicians that guarantee their continued well-being
Cut the Regulations
Thanks to the vanished regulations, by the end of the 1980’s, credit and credit cards were made available pretty much to anyone with a pulse. And the first waves of Chinese made junk were hitting the big box stores--prices were ridiculously low. Americans became addicted to the low prices and as they filled their homes and yards and garages with “quality of life products,” the illusion that life was getting better—so long as they could make the payments—lured everyone into a zombie-like, patriotic furor.
Fueled by consumer dollars, the economy expanded but it was expansion for what sake, whose sake, to what end? Sure, there were people who spent the last twenty years of life enjoying the benefits of jobs; but, the jobs were ultimately dead-ends because while the nation consumed more than the entire world ten times over and money flowed into America permitting ever more junk to be manufactured and consumed, the American consumer became addicted to a lifestyle that could not be maintained without steady and high-paying employment and to those ridiculously cheap prices.
Very quickly, nations like China and the rest of Asia, India and even Brazil, built amazing infrastructures that permitted them to enjoy economies of scale never-before seen. No American factory owner could compete with these low costs of finished goods. So, a final war was launched against the American worker. All of the economies woes were pinned on the unions and spoiled Americans and once and for all the American worker lost.
As Republic presidency, Republican held Congress came and went, the American workers were pushed further and further out of the mix; and, the only things the GOP talked about were tax cuts for the super, super rich and embarrassing things like socially conservative issues—oh, and they tried to ruin America by wasting 8 years attacking a sitting president.
The few vestiges of a liberal democratic government like social security insurance were even stalked with hot breath but to no avail—the Democrats held out. Medicare, something the wealthy seniors love to take advantage of because God knows they never want to spend their own money, was of course never touched—only enhanced at the cost of hundreds of billions, a check the American worker would have to pick.
Hysteria
Over the course of thirty years, we heard and saw on every corner—from politicians to pop culture—how it was not just an American’s right to become wealthy but his ultimate destiny. Through super cheap credit and predatory marketing of credit cards, mortgages, etc.—and to those who have always had it good in life, when a person is poor and a credit card is handed to them, it is real hard not to use that card to buy the kids some gifts at Christmas—Americans bought and bought’ and then, many started going bankrupt but the Republicans ensured that this too would be made more difficult—once again in the name of patriotic, American values.
The GOP talked about “irresponsible, free-spending ‘people’ (read: white trash and minorities) ever wanting a hand out.” They failed to consider that many of the Americans declaring bankruptcy had become simply redundant in the work place and had no other options—or they could choose crime which many did (crime always increases under Republicans.)
As homes were snatched up and filled with all of the junk homes need, money poured continued to pour into the US economy; and, the super rich got richer and their tax obligations lower. The American worker’s real wage fell to 1978 levels. 23% of the nation’s wealth belongs to 1% of the nation today. In 1978, 8% of the nation’s wealth belonged to that lucky 1%.
By September 2008, the bubble that was the American economy—and sadly the world’s because everyone likes a quick buck—burst. Amazingly, the Republicans, who each time they control the government lead us into massive budget deficits, just shrugged their shoulders, pretended they had nothing to do with the failed economy and went into attack mode so that they could prevent the Democrats from applying the long-needed measures to fix the economy—to bring the regulating and guiding hand of government back into the mix.
President Obama came to office truly believing he could govern in a bipartisan manner given the calamity which had befallen the nation. When he put the stimulus forth, he was attacked by the GOP. They demanded tax cuts or nothing—they now had nothing to lose. So, he compromised and lowered the amount of the stimulus and made one third of it tax cuts—he did this to prove his bipartisan credentials. They trashed him for it and then mocked him when the stimulus didn’t keep the nation below 8% unemployment—although all economists have said that stimulus worked.
Right Ideas, Wrong America
The stimulus should have been two times what it was and should have given tax cuts only to small businesses—something the GOP is against. However thanks to the genius of Fox “News”--which delivers the news always with either a slightly mocking tone—when it has something to do with the president or Democrats—or as if Armageddon had finally arrived (and quite often served up by hot women)--and the countless other hysterically, right-wing radio and TV personalities, Americans have bought hook, line and sinker that they are part of the rich; and, so when the GOP cut taxes and ridicules the spending of the Democrats, Fox tells the lazy and couch-bound that it is their wealthy being stolen—many of these people believing this are unemployed and have lost children to the wars of the GOP.
Well, here it is: the US economy over these thirty years has suffered irreparable harm. Systemically we are finished. Because the myth of the profit holds so much power, the American business owner is forgiven when he acts in his best economic interest and cuts corners: maybe he doesn’t clean the eggs too well, maybe he doesn’t tell anyone about the lead-based paint and quite often he will hire an illegal alien. Why does he hire the illegal? Because the American workers were spoiled by the Democrats and the unions and they cost too much, right?
Thirty years ago, with Vietnam War over and the Cold one soon to end, America had a phenomenal opportunity to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure. Bill Clinton did what he could and he also balanced our budget. But, twenty years of Republican presidents and almost as many of GOP Congresses—enforced by the hysterical right media—permitted the super-rich to build China’s infrastructure and to kill off the American worker.
In November, sadly the GOP will return to power but the nation won’t lose anything. America can’t lose what it no longer has. We are a greed-driven, selfish nation and we want what we want now and for the lowest cost possible and I’ll be damned if I’ll pay a penny extra. As we sit this week in September in our cheap cars, eating in Italian restaurants where the only thing Italian is the maybe the coffee—God knows the kitchens are filled with illegal Hispanic workers—and we go to big box stores and buy inexpensive junk, remember that the only person we have to blame is ourselves—oh, and the GOP.
Shame on the GOP and shame all of us because we let it happen. We are not ready to further compete in this world’s economy—unless we can get the world to start warring on a scale never before seen--and the GOP has neither imagination nor the integrity to lead this nation back to greatness.
President Obama has tried but he has been mocked.
