The adage that says ‘a capitalism will sell you the rope to hang him with’ comes to mind while reviewing the latest round of Feed the Rich that is going in in the United States. It is frightening the pace at which the plutocrats are lining their pockets and fleecing the general population of the United States.
The dogmatic slumber brought on by the corporate class has never seemed so intense and impenetrable as it is now under the current Republican administration. Grievous actions and policy just seem to float by carried on waves of expressed outrage, but tangible action/opposition never results. If the US was a functioning democracy, the streets should have been and still should be filled with people decrying the malfeasance being carried out in their name. But what is happening – crickets, and very quiet obsequious ones that that.
So, it is time to stoke some anger and rage at the current political order. Le me help you get started with this snipped from an article by Paul Street writing for Counterpunch.
“Here we are now, half a year later, careening into a dystopian holiday season. With his epically low approval rating of 32 percent, the orange-tinted bad grandpa in the Oval Office has won a viciously regressive tax bill that is widely rejected by the populace. The bill was passed by a Republican-controlled Congress whose current approval rating stands at 13 percent. It is a major legislative victory for the Republicans, a party whose approval rating fell to an all-time low of 29 percent at the end of September—a party that tried to send a child molester to the U.S. Senate.
The bill itself had an approval rating of 25 percent prior to passage. No wonder. The arch-plutocratic tax “reform:
+ Drastically slashes the corporate tax rate without closing loopholes and deductions that allow the nation’s already cash-flush corporations to register their profits overseas and while doing nothing to switch corporations’ focus from maximizing short-term returns to investing in the creation of more jobs and higher wages.
+ Encourages corporations to invest in automation without offering any assistance to displaced workers.
+ All but eliminates the estate tax for the nation’s richest families.
+ Adds $1.5 trillion to the nation’s debt over the next decade, setting the stage for major slashes to the nation’s three biggest social insurance programs – Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare (they will be cut back in the name of “scaling back” so-called entitlement programs to “reduce the deficit.”)
+ Gives a major tax cut on profits multinational companies have stashed in offshore tax havens.
+ Cuts taxes on “pass through” businesses – a benefit that will be disproportionately enjoyed by the rich.
+ Makes it easier for rich people to classify themselves as businesses to get a tax break.
+ Increases the complexity of the tax code.
+ Tightens deductions for lower- and middle-income wage-earners.
+ Subsidizes private and religious schools, a boon to corporate school privatizers and the religious right.
+ Repeals Obamacare’s individual mandate, which will leave millions without health insurance and raise the cost of health insurance.
The GOP tax bill rewards the already rich and punishes the poor at “a time,” The Atlantic notes, “when post-tax corporate profits have hovered at a record-level high for the last seven years, and the 1 percent’s share of total income is higher than at any time in the second half of the 20th century.” It is what New York Magazine calls a huge windfall for the wealthiest Americans.” It is “certain to exacerbate income [and wealth- P.S.] inequality at a time when the playing field is already heavily tilted to towards the rich.”
The New Gilded Age is slated to become yet more grotesquely unequal. As Trump might, it’s unbelievable. The nation’s economy is already so savagely unequal that the top 10th of its upper 1 percent owns as much wealth as its bottom 90 percent. Its corporations are raking in record profits. Half of its citizens have no savings. Half its population lives in or near poverty. Twenty-one percent of its childrenare growing up at less than the federal government’s notoriously inadequate poverty level, and 41 million Americans—12.3 percent of the population—are “food insecure.” Not disparate enough!
The dismal, dollar-drenched Democrats, the party of “inauthentic opposition,” are hardly more popular than the radically regressive Republicans.”
If there was ever time for a third party in the US, it would be now.
bleatmop
Mystro
Dead Wild Roses 
15 comments
December 29, 2017 at 7:01 am
Steve Ruis
Re “If there was ever time for a third party in the US, it would be now.” Hear! Hear!
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December 29, 2017 at 11:33 am
Meg
This is assuming that there should be a working class and an upper class. The whole idea of class is a very Patriarchal notion. The effort to “bring back the middle class” seems like just another way to institute social stratification on income level, to give men even more of a reason to alienate women on the job and create hostile work environments to reduce competition for good paying jobs. People keep asking for a higher minimum wage but every time that happens the working class pays for it somehow. Wage slavery, even kinder wage slavery, is not the answer.
Rather than creating yet more levels of institutional oppression based on a money system with no actual commodity to back it up, why not institute social policies that make access to education and health care socialized and non-profit? Part of the reason other countries like Finland are doing so well is because they eliminated the for-profit model of public education. Other countries in Europe offer tuition free college education which benefits their society on a whole. The problem with America isn’t that we don’t have the resources to help our citizens, it’s the general attitude that people are expected to “earn” basic human needs of a home, access to health care, and a quality education. Landlords especially in inner city areas are allowed to charge ridiculous amounts of money for rent, forcing people to choose between having a home and having life saving medicine.
Our culture will continue to degrade and decline as long as everyday people are guaranteed to be stressed out, hopeless, unhealthy, and incapable of thinking for themselves.
Those that profit don’t care as long as they make enough money to avoid the more disastrous consequences of their social policies. They hole themselves up in gated communities and leave the rest of us to suffer.
If there was ever time for a third party in the US, it would be now.
Third parties are known for handing elections to the Republicans, as is what happened when Trump was elected. Third parties also tend to run fringe candidates that are kind of wacky. Anti-vaxx and conspiracy theory folks like Jill Stein got away with rubbing elbows with the Russians in the name of being an “anti-establishment” candidate.
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December 29, 2017 at 12:23 pm
lovetruthcourage
Actually, there is plenty of organized opposition and outrage wrt this tax scam. Canada is no better, Canadian propaganda aside. The rich have outsized influence worldwide, and it’s a huge problem globally. Some of the “facts” cited also happen to be incorrect. “Poverty” in the USA often involves mountains of expensive electronics and frequent restaurant meals. Only in the USA are people with the latest 60” TVs and expensive computers considered as living in poverty. The USA isn’t Africa. Food insecurity — such people qualify for hundreds of dollars, per person, monthly, of SNAP “food stamps”, and often get additional food from food pantries. Again, not exactly Somalia. In fact, no person in the USA has died of poverty-related starvation for 100 years (not talking about anorexia or psych problems.) Meghan Murphy once got pissed at me for pointing that out, but when challenged, she couldn’t come up with a single case — the name of just ONE person — who did. Again, this tax scam is beyond horrible, and I don’t want to minimize that, but hyperbole doesn’t help. Many Americans lack savings because they are keeping up with the Jones’ and financially illiterate. There is a guy at my work who always buys the latest gadgets, and yet, doesn’t contribute to his 401k, not even to get the free money that the company matches. A lot of people want to look great in the latest fashions and new cars, but they aren’t educated about interest rates on loans. There is a “want it now” consumer aspect. I educated myself about financial matters when very young, seeing that it would make a greater impact on my financial status than working harder or longer. This served me well. House is paid off. High six figures in my retirement accounts, plus a traditional defined benefit pension. Lucrative investments. It can be done, even by “regular” nonspecial folks like me. It’s math, not magic. However, I don’t have a new car (next year!), acrylic nails, all of the latest and greatest gadgets, or spend big bucks on fashion (though expensive jewelry is a weakness.) My best advice? One simply MUST find a way to live below their means, whatever it takes. Don’t worry about how others perceive you. Take that money and invest it wisely. Let it run for decades. Do NOT touch it no matter what!
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December 29, 2017 at 4:22 pm
The Arbourist
@Meg
I would argue that voter apathy whether passive or actively(voter suppression and what not) has achieved and will continue to contribute toward Republican election victories. The people see that they are not being heard or spoken for and effectively tune out of politics.
There is essentially no difference between the two business class parties, other than choosing the speed of at which neo-liberal ‘reforms’ are passed.
I would like to see a socialist party, drawing on the legacy (and current work) of the likes of Eugene Debs. Florence Kelly, and Barbra Ehrenreich that would be an actual progressive alternative to the other parties and their craven duopoly.
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December 29, 2017 at 4:32 pm
The Arbourist
@LTC
“In fact, no person in the USA has died of poverty-related starvation for 100 years (not talking about anorexia or psych problems.) “
Not dying because of poverty is a pretty low bar to aim for, no? The significant negative physiological and psychological effects of living in poverty or even in the precariate are well worth addressing and changing social policy to address.
Inequality in society is one of the greatest threats to any society (see The Spirit Level for why) and those sorts of changes are not achieved on an individual level.
I’m glad that you were fortunate to be able to boostrap yourself into a secure position in society.
Not everyone is able to, and a mark of a civilized progressive society is to see that everyone has enough to live without food, housing or safety deficits.
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December 30, 2017 at 3:57 pm
Meg
@lovetruthcourage your comments about poverty in America are beyond insulting. Good for you that you were lucky enough to survive your childhood without any mental health or learning problems, that you weren’t horrifically abused and neglected to the point of having behavioral issues, or that you weren’t forced to spend your formative years scrounging in dumpsters just to eat, and that you weren’t forced to work at the age of 13 or forced to drop out of school to bring in extra money so that the lights don’t get shut off. Thank god you have never faced the horrors of being prostituted out by your stepfather or ever given birth to a rapist’s baby. Good for you that you come from such a good background that you don’t have to think about this or even be aware that this shit happens in your own backyard.
It must be nice to be cushioned with a house of your own and a six figure retirement nest egg and the luxury to assume that anyone who struggles with money is just an irresponsible moron who was too stupid to make the right decisions and therefore have “chosen” to be poor.
To make matters worse, you – a wealthy person in comparison to the working poor – think you have the entitlement to define what poverty is when you’re not even living in it. In your bootstrapping worldview poverty doesn’t exist unless people are starving to death. You know, kind of like men who think rape doesn’t exist unless the victim is covered in bruises. Therefore, people who are struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over their head should just shut the fuck up and suffer in silence. Then you bring up Somalia as if they have no technology or Internet at all:
http://www.refworld.org/docid/550c35904.html
Yeah, I know this is hard to believe, but Africa isn’t just full of backward people living in mud huts. I can’t even believe I have to point that out.
Your comments about food stamps are laughably uninformed. A single person gets maybe 150$ a month, if they are lucky. You may get less if you were forced to take a second job to make ends meet for the winter. If you shop like a normal person at a non-Walmart store that will last you about two weeks. Many poor people lack transportation and are forced to shop at convenience stores that have inflated prices. Google “The High Cost of Poverty: Why the Poor Pay More” from the Washington Post.
And how do you know if someone hasn’t died from starvation here in America? Just because you don’t hear about it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. It’s not the like media gives a shit enough about homeless people to report on their day to day realities. Homeless people are found dead on the street all the time, and nobody cares why they died.
@Arb now you know part of the reason why I don’t bother with feminist organizing. It’s bad enough dealing with men who refuse to acknowledge their abusive behavior and sexism, then I have to deal with misogynist women who think I’m too privileged to complain about anything. Apparently even being poor with a barely working computer warrants accusations that I own a 60 inch television when I haven’t had cable television my entire adult life, and getting “hundreds of dollars in food stamps” when I have to stand in line to make sure groceries stretch until next month.
With “sisters” like these who needs enemies. “Sisters” who tell other people to invest knowing damn well the stock market is just a glorified form of gambling and it’s easy to fall prey to shady brokers and lose stocks when the market takes the inevitable tumble. I knew a fifty year old woman who lost her entire retirement in 2007, so much for financial literacy.
I was even told by an “independent radical” that cooking your own food is a hobby. A FUCKING HOBBY. Apparently she thinks I should be living off of shitty one dollar tv dinners and a bag of apples, as if anyone’s heart and blood pressure can handle 5000 mg of sodium a day. Fucking IGNORANT.
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December 30, 2017 at 4:45 pm
Meg
@Arb,
There’s always been voter apathy, though. There’s always been a problem with people sitting out elections, especially mid-term and local elections. There are people who can’t take time off work to vote or have a serious case of learned helplessness being told their vote doesn’t count. However tight elections like the one in 2000 featured Ralph Nader as an up and coming lefty contender stole just enough votes from Al Gore to give the election to Bush, and we all saw what a disaster that was.
So I’m cynical about third party voting. It doesn’t help my rapist hugging sister is a Hillary basher and votes third party and fancies herself a political maverick, and is also Queen Misogynist of America. Nor does it help that the rest of the far left has a serious misogyny problem and antifeminists are constantly trying to control the dialogue and keep women in their place.
I’m just going to keep voting Democrat, not because I think they are perfect but because they’re sane and dependable. They’ve been patiently softening blows from Republicans for years and have been treated like everyone’s punching bags by both the right and the far left. Love them or hate them, they’re the only ones who have been standing in the way of radical white supremacy from the lunatic fringe. Third party voters complain that candidates like Gore and Clinton are “too boring” or “uninspiring,” well I’m not a narcissist who demands other people stimulate me in order to support them. I care about sanity, qualifications, and experience and it’s really disgusting to me that people treat elections like personality contests.
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December 30, 2017 at 5:47 pm
Vesuvius R. Kaine
Hi Arb,
Just stopping in on my way to the New Year. Credit where it’s due, so congrats to you and yours for blogging which I believe ultimately helped “out” the Weinsteins of the world and caused some legitimate change – and may it change things forever.
You mentioned a third party. I no longer thing it’s enough simply to have a third party in the next election. There’s too much corruption and cronyism in the system as a whole with both the media and law enforcement being corrupt and “rotten to the core” as well. It’s so bad that even a completely “no label” President wouldn’t have a chance even if they were elected.
Besides, how does even an independent President “clean house” when the House, the Senate, and even the Justice Department, the FBI, the CIA, etc. are still stacked with political cronies who all put big business and party over both the law AND what’s best for the country?
Lastly you mention business (must have been what perked my ears up in the first place!) To that I would make one small change to your comment:
There is essentially no difference between the two BIGbusiness class parties, other than choosing the speed of at which neo-liberal ‘reforms’ are passed. Small business – and small business owners – are still getting screwed under EITHER administration, and under the practices of either party.
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December 31, 2017 at 11:43 am
The Arbourist
@Vern
Its one of those things, like holding back the tide with a teaspoon – sometimes it actually works. Most of the time, the tide does. Thanks Vern. :)
Maybe it would jar a few things loose and give some light to fixing the gerrymandering and start to get a handle on the corruption. It’s a long shot for sure, but systemic change happens when the system begins to fracture under its own weight. I just hope the people and pieces are in place to take advantage of it when it happens.
And that is the thing wouldn’t it be nice to have a party the recognizes the importance of small business and non-corporate contributors to society rather than just the usual empty rhetoric and glad-handing. But you’re correct there are *many* significant hurdles to be overcome, systemically speaking, before a party for the people’s interests can be formed and move into power.
Happy New Year Vern.
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December 31, 2017 at 11:55 am
The Arbourist
@Meg
Bush was something else. It’s hard though because the imperialist arc of the US doesn’t really change whether there is a Democrat or a Republican in the WH. Could the second Gulf War been avoided without the the neo-cons running the show? Maybe? But the interests of the elite are always represented and I’m not sure that the US would have not invaded Iraq a second time, even with Gore in the WH.
I’d vote so quickly for a Woman’s party. :)
They are, in most cases, the lesser of two evils. I just want them to be better and to remember that the US is not just the upper 10% – and that the working class people need to have a voice in how the country is governed. What I fear is that they will realize their oversight too late, and only when the pitchforks and torches have been deployed and by then it will be too late.
It is intentional, I think, because debate on policy and issues might actually open up a substantive dialog and get people interested in the running of their country. The focus on the superficial, the image management is largely meant to dull people from the politics and denude the process.
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December 31, 2017 at 7:17 pm
Meg
@Arb, I just don’t have a reason to believe that a third party would ever be a woman’s party. A third party will likely be filled with more Christian white guys who think the world revolves around them and everyone else can literally go to hell. So we have the Republican party that is unapologetically white male and Christian and work actively for those interests, and we have the Democrats who are also very white and Christian but at least try to make life easier for non-Christians, poor, women, and minorities. They are the only group with power that are able to prevent Republicans from unleashing the full extent of their cruelty. For those who live with the worst consequences of systemic inequality, they are nowhere near the same. The differences are a matter of life and death.
Democrats have ties to corporations, this is true. But how likely is it that a third party ran by white Christian men is going to remain free of corporate interests? What are the odds that a male-led third party – probably led by the Internet war lords of the antifeminist variety – is actually going to say NO to corporate shenanigans if it lands him status symbols and a position of power? Not very good odds at all.
Let’s say that a miracle happens and there is a woman’s party. How do I know the women in charge aren’t misogynists themselves? Feminists often make the argument that misogynist women are better than misogynist men, and there’s a valid point in that. However it doesn’t change the fact that misogynist women will still prioritize the needs of men over the needs of other women. They may be more likely to take other women’s interests into consideration but when it comes to men they care about you can bet they’ll throw other women under the bus in a heartbeat. I’ve seen lesbians throw straight women under the bus for gay men. I’ve seen both white women and non-white women defend rapists because they’re Muslim or a minority. I’ve seen feminists bully other feminists into closing their blogs or social media over small mistakes and disagreements. Even if a woman’s party is run by feminist women, it is still highly likely that misogyny will still be a problem.
In the event that we upend the political system and risk certain chaos by instituting a third party, it’s got to be done right. IMO that’s impossible at this point. There is so much sadism and wanton lack of respect for even the most basic of human decency that I don’t even think we deserve a third party. Americans in general are too fucked up to even breed let alone have this “culture” survive for much longer – if you can even call it that. What we have is closer to a barely civilized society that deserves to quietly implode without fanfare while the rest of the world gets a fighting chance to reverse climate change.
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March 10, 2018 at 12:30 pm
lovetruthcourage
Got to get money out of politics, but how? Reversing Citizens United would be a start, but not enough.
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March 10, 2018 at 12:35 pm
The Arbourist
@ LTC
We had a measure of it in Canada, until the last conservative government axed it, but at one time, our federal political parties could only run on the money provided to them by the government based on a sum of money per vote garnered.
No private donations. Public financing was a thing here, not too long ago.
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March 10, 2018 at 1:44 pm
lovetruthcourage
Meg, your assumptions are flat out wrong. I have suffered more than my fair share of abuse, and started working at age ten. I wasn’t diagnosed with disabilities, true, but would probably be considered mildly autistic these days. In the olden days, we only had smart and dumb. Never heard of autism until the 1980s. I have lived in poverty and went without a vehicle for 6 years, and was once without stable housing. I have slept outside, not by choice. Not always safe in Chicago. I am the classic bootstrap case. Put myself through university and grad school too. Started investing in blue chip stocks before I even owned a car or had enough food. Made a modest sum. Parlayed my modest gains by exploiting a trend I noticed in the IPO markets in the late 1990s, early 2000s. Suddenly, this poor grad student was making over $10,000 per month. Kept my beater car and starter home. Did travel a bit. Went on to the currency markets. Tons of opportunities. No guts, no glory. My portfolio also took a serious hit during the Great Recession. Lost about half of what I had. (Got it all back, plus a bunch since then.) Only the stupid sell at the bottom. Time to buy! I was buying real estate after the implosion and people looked at me like I had two heads! It was an astute move. Still hungry for opportunities. A job won’t do it. Even a career won’t do it. Those bastards just pay you enough so you show up tomorrow and not a penny more. Must exploit capitalist opportunities. On the stock market, you can call it “gambling” but the overall direction of the stock market is up, even when factoring in the Great Depression and Great Recession and all of the other scary bubbles. Look into low cost index funds. Stock market implosions are why you hedge and pay off your house and all obligations. Cash is king. Keep fat stacks of hundos in your safe deposit box, next to your jewels and foreign currency. Make sure you find a credit union that pays you 2-3%. Fuck big banks. Market will implode again, probably soon. Go shopping! Buy! Buy! Buy! In-laws are having success buying franchise restaurants, own about a dozen. Maybe that suits you more than the stock market. Whatever. Go for it! The point is, a job doesn’t cut it. A job is just as much of a gamble. Life is a gamble. Growing up I was frequently told I would never amount to anything. Have more money than everyone who ever said that to me, lol. Friend started car dealerships, now owns five big ones. Opening a business is a “gamble” too.
I have visited Africa, though not Somalia, so you don’t need to “educate” me. Have you been to Africa? Or are you an armchair expert?
Yes, homeless people are found dead all of the time, but not due to starvation. Some die from the elements. Many drink and drug themselves to death. Shelters are available, but not everyone wants to obey the rules. They can’t be forced.
Further, my observations were not an attack on you and shouldn’t be seen as such.
I have a supervisor who makes much more than me, but I am far wealthier than him. Why? Choices matter. I don’t live fancy or need to keep up with the Joneses. I do not need external validation. Money is freedom and security. It’s not about a sports car or McMansion. One must live far below their means to accumulate. Still in the same house. Still fix my own car. Accountant doesn’t understand why we live so modestly, thinks it odd. Fine. I am odd. In-laws with all those restaurants shake their heads at poor relations. I am cool with that! Point is, supervisor can’t exploit opportunities because he lives check to check — even at his salary. His choice, not mine. Will retire early, but actually like working — me, not him. He can’t afford it.
There is a path for you, and you will find it. Social safety nets are important, but I am glad I was too uncomfortable to live that way for long. Started reading financial news in my late teens, and lots of books. Love books! Why? Had an older boyfriend, thought him poor. Moved in with him. Saw his brokerage statement. Wow! Learned about the power of compounding. Did you know that if you invest just $3500 per year, starting at age 20, at 7% interest (historical stock market return), you will have over a million dollars by age 65? That’s math, not magic, and shows the power of compounding. That’s $157,500 in, and a $1,000,000 out. Just makes sense. Don’t be afraid to take prudent chances. Working is fun, but doesn’t cut it!
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March 12, 2018 at 12:53 am
lovetruthcourage
Public financing of elections is the right way, IMO.
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