Monday, September 6, 2010

On this Labor Day, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich succinctly describes how Americans are working longer hours for less pay while the benefits of increased productivity flow to the top 1%; this distorted distribution of the wealth we create means consumers don’t have the money to buy what the economy is capable of producing, and the grandiose expectations of the super-rich promote manipulative investments and political deals that eventually crash. We’re stuck in the Great Recession, says Reich, until we have reforms at least as radical as those used during the Great Depression. It’s worth noting that 1% of the population contributes about 90% of the campaign contributions to politicians. That’s our finding from various studies at Democracy North Carolina and no doubt it holds true elsewhere. For the sake of our economy, our jobs, our future, we need more political leaders who don’t depend on the narrow-minded super-rich.