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Ytlaya posted:There's also the fact that American quality of life was/is subsidized by exploitation abroad. American success isn't a big surprise: vast territory with mostly an arable climate, no real threats anywhere near it and 2 oceans on either side. We basically could continually expand because there wasn't anyone to stop us, and when someone got in our way we kicked their teeth in. That said, the post-war success wasn't much of a surprise either with high employment and wages (for whites) and increased worker protection. The worm has turned since the 1980s though and now the "dream" has become far more threadbare. The West was ultimately successful more than anything because it was a lot bigger and a lot richer, and if you have to trade blocs, the one that is multiple times larger is going to win. (It also helps that the US allowed its some allies to have a one way trade relationship with it (Japan/South Korea) in order to build up their industrial base). Also, I am having a real hard time with people talking about "American leftists" in this thread, outside of a handful of tiny parties and a couple prominent individuals, there isn't really much of a presence. Liberal and Leftist are separate words for a reason, especially since a leftist implies economic policy more radical than the center-left and many American liberals aren't even really center-left.
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Sep 18, 2014 22:03
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If anything the chance for reform at the electoral level only slips away more when money is further pumped into the system. Occupy got a rather impressive amount of press considering the near non-existent resources it had but it could only last so long, as long as the camps were up more or less. To be honest, I think at best, you can only change things at a very local level at this point where the money is still low enough that citizens can be involved in the process. Even then, if you live in a relatively small city (for example, Portland Oregon), institutional forces are going to be still near unassailable. At some point, you have to be realistic amount the forces at play in the US and what can be done to combat them, and at best it is working around the corners here and there. It doesn't mean it should be tried but even at the local level it can often be a nightmarish challenge.
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Sep 19, 2014 07:55
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