Basically, American capitalism has been gamed in multiple ways since the late 1970s, starting with Jimmy Carter's deregulatory schemes, then accelerating with Ronald Reagan and continuing under Bill Clinton. And now with the invalidation by the Supreme Court of the Chevron doctrine, we are about to enter another stage in the rich-get-richer scheme of things. Dr Reich, I look forward to further articles from you on this topic but, I hope, some will focus on the structural reforms that are desperately needed to make the US a far fairer, less corrupt society.
Adam, what I could never understand was why in the world any president would work to deregulate and get rid of the Chevron doctrine. They were in place as guardrails to keep these huge corporations from running roughshod over the American citizens.
Hi Peggy, I am not sure which President you are referring to here. I believe that the Chevron doctrine came in in about 1980-82 but I do not not know of any President who asked that it be invalidated. (That, however, is probably just my own ignorance.) Carter began the deregulation stuff but I do not remember him being particularly vocal about its importance. Ronald Reagan certainly was and Bill Clinton carried on in that spirit but I think quietly. What is clear is that the GOP and its rich donors hated this rule and have wanted to get rid of it, I suspect for decades. It is also clear that if Trump becomes President again, he will use the new Supreme Court ruling against it as a rationale for undoing much of the regulations that have been put in place to protect the pubic and that he will dismantle much of the civil service to do so, as Project 2025 promises.
You need to review the Chevron doctrine. The Supreme Court reversal simply says that judges have a responsibility to interpret laws passed by Congress. The earlier Chevron decision said only a bureaucratic expert was qualified to interpret law and write regulations, i.e. we only had two branches of Federal government, not three. And maybe only one if Congress was lazy.
Personally, I like the idea that a judge should be able to weigh in on the meaning of a law which may be vague as passed. I want you and any citizen to read and express your opinion of something buried in a 1000-page document passed in haste followed by a statement, "You will have to pass it to find out what is in it" (Nancy Pelosi on the Obamacare bill). Otherwise, we end up with a nation of the lawyers, by the lawyers, and for the lawyers.
No, I want the scientists working under the relevant governmental agency, in this case the FDA, making those determinations and then passing on their recommendations to their bosses who will make the rule. I most definitely do not want either Congressman or judges being called on to make such decisions, because they do not have the requisite knowledge. Sorry to have to point this out but we live in an advanced, complicated, technologically advanced society and we need people who actually know something in order to make informed decisions.
Your choice is to be ignorant and personally irresponsible outside or your own fields, leaving it to unelected bureaucrats and the President (Stalin and Lysenko perhaps or Collins and Fauci?) to control your life. Let's get rid of judges and Congress and go straight to a totalitarian government. Is that what you are saying? Do your really think that scientists, or "their bosses" who depend on government taxes for their income produce only work that is pure and unbiased? Pretty naive, but I know you are not alone.
I absolutely prefer expert civil servants supervised by the duly elected president to ignorant judicial political partisans to make critical policy decisions that require expertise.
So you would have us at mercy of corporations whose sole reason for existence is to maximize shareholder profits, at any c st,including the health of society, and individuals.
IOW Karl Marx says that it is OK to lie, Cheat, Steal in the pursuit of shareholder profits.
Government agencies are responsible to the public, corporations ae responsible to the shareholders.
Whose interests are served when shareholders can do whatever they please.
Maybe you should read up a little about the health, safety and life of the public and workers before government regulation.
All good, Robert. But the $500-odd million paid into Kamala's campaign fund is surely buying something, and I'd be happy to bet it is the leave the rich donors and their tax breaks alone.
I expect Kamala to do many good things if she gets to be President, especially if the Dems can capture both House and Senate, but at the end of the 4 years I really, really doubt that there will be any meaningful change to the way the system of America's Capitalism for the Rich actually works.
In many other countries, like here in Europe, the corporations work for society at large, and are taxed and regulated for the benefit of all citizens. All good.
But in America, society is only there to work for the corporations, so you are only relevant to them if you are an employee, a customer or an investor. Anyone else is not just irrelevant, but treated as a parasite on corporate profits through the tax system.
I really, really doubt America will ever manage to turn that around.
You are right. Look at voting roll calls in Congress. For example, whenever Congress manages to propose a bill to close an obvious tax loophole for trusts to facilitate inherited wealth, republicans vote against it en masse, but there are democrats, as well, so in the slim majorities in our government, it cannot pass. When well over 99% of our House and Senate become millionaires, why do you think this will be forevermore.?
It would be nice to think that Kamala will do good things, but to do so, she would have to get elected. That is by no means a sure thing, even with a $500 million war chest, for several reasons, but an important one is the fact that, while the rate of inflation has gone down, prices have not, and people are struggling as a result... And the tax credits that Kamala offers are not going to help the average Joe. The only thing that I can think of that would help would be a massive increase in the food stamp benefits program, an expansion whose need could be explained by the monopolistic prices, and which would prove that government can be responsive to the needs of the people that result. The subsidies would sunset as wages catch up to the cost of living- which is to say that people would gradually climb out of the program when their income increased, which would be assisted by an increase in the minimum wage. This might also get people to understand that a vote for Trump would put the problem of corporate greed on steroids.
Being in Europe, you will be in the front lines if Trump gets elected and appeases Putin, who would thus win the war in Ukraine in early 2025 with his dreams of dominating Europe, and the world still intact, and with America bankrupt as a result of the next round of tax cuts for the rich, and at war with itself. Ironically, the war would probably end in November if Kamala gets elected, because that is the only way that Russia will be able to save its oil production capability, which it will be losing this winter due to lack of use during a Siberian winter. It will take decades for Russia to get back to its previous oil production even then.
One group that is pretty much always ignored, and suffering terribly right now are seniors. As of 2022, there were 57.8 million adults aged 65 and older in the United States, which is 17.3% of the total population. This includes 31.9 million women and 25.9 million men. Social security isn't nearly cutting it anymore. For example, I am trying to suvive on $12K/year. Retirement income? You must be joking. For many of us, wages were flat from 1970 on, and "saving for retirement"--something easy to say but difficult to do--was nearly impossible. Seniors who did have retirement money are blowing through it at an increased rate, given the recent spike in "greedflation." Harris has said she'd like to increase SS payments by $200/month. If she manages to get that done--something Bernie Sanders has been trying to achieve for years!--maybe I'll finally be able to get my teeth cleaned again or buy new glasses. In the meantime, I watch from the sidelines, angry that I'm too old to work full time anymore and terrified about what will happen to me and other seniors in the next few years.
I feel this is another example of corporations winning. Ending what used to be more common practice with pensions and instead saying the government will take care of our elders and now that feels like a scam. We need to get back to an economy that is about the workers. And I believe that would increase revenue into SS which would allow for raises for our seniors currently needing their hard earned retirement. Thank you for spreading this message. $12k/he is clearly not enough for anyone, just to buy food or pay for gasoline, not including any healthcare, rent/housing, transportation, taxes, etc.
I hear you! I am still working part time and trying to religiously save. Taxes are too high for most and benefits are too low. Worst of all, try to get another job? Anyone who thinks age discrimination is not real- tell me where you work. Those college degrees and certificates mean nothing. Recently I volunteered to help with a group for political campaign public education efforts. I heard nothing back! Not even the courtesy of a response. Given my experience, it seems to me there is a wealth of untapped knowledge and experience waiting for opportunities.
Kprez: I'm on Medicare, but had a secondary through a former employer, CalPers. it was a Platinum Medicare PPO supplement. I received notice that my premium would go up 30.7%, Meaning I would actually have to pay CalPers if I kept the insurance. So I canceled, I am fortunate in that I also have Tricare for life, it was my tertiary, now it is my secondary.
I am fortunate, I made some good, but hard choices when I was young. Then again growing up poor I looked to the future and planned my life accordingly.
Never the less I feel for other seniors who have to make a choice between nutrition and medical care.
My sister died last April, she had lung cancer and gall bladder problems as well as another cancer. All she had was Medicare, she paid $35 a month for the hospital bill that Medicare doesn't cover (20%), she had sold her house to her grandson for a nominal fee, so that the debt collector could not come after her estate which was zero when she died.
How many millions of people die every year because they can't afford medical insurance. Gig workers, construction workers.
I know two men who worked in construction, they don't now, they worked until their hands got mangled in an accident,and they could not longer wield a hammer.
They take one look at you and think "I can take advantage of this old fart." Once you're a senior, you cease to be a valuable assset. You're just old. If they hire you, and that's a big if, you get offered a terrible wage, nothing even close to what you made in your prime. Yes, agism definitely exists. I started running into it at sixty!
Ageism is rampant in America. Poorly regulated corporations dismiss older workers and replace them with younger, cheaper models and they do it with impunity.
After 20 years on the job, my wife, at age 50, was finally making an acceptable salary. Progress reports of her fine work had boosted her salary during those years and the benefits were good.
Then, from out of left field she is laid off for a “reduction in force” according to her employer.
After 20 years working there, of course she maintains many relationships with current employees. They were only too glad to inform her that her replacement, a fresh faced college graduate, was hired a month later…for far less money and less benefits.
Except for gasoline, because of competition, the prices never go down. Food is a necessity, in economic terms, it faces and inelastic demand. and there is no competition in the processed food industry,. the processed food industry is dominated by five food giants, and they either conspire, or have convinced people via advertising to prefer one brand over another
I remember when gas was 29 cents a gallon and a Clark Bar was 5 cents, Gas is now $3 to $5 a gallon and a Clark Bar is $1.49, and the Clark Bar is smaller than it was at $.05
The only way to have prices go down is to stop buying the product. But the consumer is his or her own worst enemy.
On the other hand manufacturers will dispose of unsought and unsold product, rather than reduce prices, and take the loss as a tax write off., because the Chamber of Commerce lobbyists have written our tax laws.
Az, I like the system you have in Europe. I would hope that when Kamala gets in the White House, she will tackle this problem and work on correcting it. It will not happen overnight but she does have Lina Kahn and others working hard to fix some of it right now. Vote blue, America, up and down the ballot!
As I keep saying to all those that think Kamala has already won, the polls are still 50/50 within the 4% margin of error, and the last debate has barely made them twitch. Apparently almost all voters had already made up their minds, so there won't be a landslide, it is highly unlikely that Kamala will win both Senate and House, and Trump will contest every result leasing to months of court cases. And that's last one is the better scenario - he could easily try for a coup!
As for the Ukraine War, my concern is that America is lined up for involvement in 3 wars right now; Ukraine with NATO (currently seems inevitable), a Middle East war on the side of Israel and Saudi against Iran and Hamas, and perhaps a Far East action when China invades Taiwan (that may also trigger North Korea attacking the South).
One reason friends of mine in Europe actually prefer Trump is because they think he will keep America out of all three conflicts, de-escalating and so avoiding WW3. Of course that will pander to Putin, Xi and Kim Jong Un, which is exactly what Trump would do for his best mates, and leaves Ukraine, Taiwan and South Korea completely shafted.
I suspect many Americans may be making the same calculation. As I would if I lived in America, particularly if I had a 20-year-old son, for example!
If Trump wins, the chances of war are still the same,only greater, because Putin will take over Ukraine, rest,rebuild, replenish (maybe) and take over Moldova and Lithuania, the Baltic States and then Poland.
China certainly invade Taiwan, and North Korea the South, and even Trump will be hard pressed to keep us out of those wars.
The deterrent to war is fear by the aggressor, and Trump removes that fear., and gives them license to proceed.
If Trump wins, he will fulfill his promises to revenge,punish and deport and America will overnight become a third world nation, demoralized, deconstructed at war with itself, and that alone will give Putin the breathing space and opportunity he needs to run through Europe.
Europe has demilitarized, it no longer has the industrial capability to support an arms industry much like produce enough munitions to fight a sustained battle, meanwhile Russia, because of the experience in Ukraine is rebuilding and ramping up theirs.
Putin does not have any countervailing force, no public restraints to impede his militarization, he has in effect revived Stalinist Russia
No Doubt Az that Putin would have to stop, to replenish and rebuild, but as regards cannon fodder, humans are a self renewing resource.
Russia isn't China, but back during the Soviet Sino war (do you remember that), it was estimated that if Russia wiped out the leading ranks of a Chinese Army thy losses would be constantly replenished from behind, and by sheer numbers the Chinese would be in Moscow.
Putin has the full resources of the "Republics", and Siberia is not empty,in fact both Stalin and Putin have used the Asiatic tribes in Siberia as human fodder in their human waves.
I don't credit Putin with enough forward thinking to consider the disruption of AMOC (Atlantic Meridonal Overturning Circulation) as a threat, especially as it doesn't benefit Russia, Western Europe and England are the beneficiares of the AMOC.
I don't credit Putin with thinking any further ahead than his own needs and desire to go down in history as Vladimir the great,alongside Peter and Katherine, and I suspect that he is one of 16.6666 % of Russians that is a descendant of Jenghis Khan. he sure acts like it
I would not suggest Putin is stupid, he just isn't capable of thinking long term, anymore than our billionaires who fund Trump are able. It is the present that they live in, that preoccupies them. They and frankly most people don't even give the future or consequences a nod.
When I was 17 I planned for my retirement. And today I plan for a future which may not arrive, after all I am 85
As regards hitting inside of Russia, I blame Jake Sullivan for Biden's decision not to support Zelensky.
Either Jake is a timid soul or he is a Putin Asset. I hope Harris gets rid of him, and most of Biden's advisers, and especially the current Trump humping staff of Secret Service.
Thanks for the education on the Russian sea route to the Baltic. they still have to sail past
Gloomy for sure. But Europe is not devoid of the same problems...these are all multinational remember. It is that they are draped over a frame of what we here call socialism...basic social services and education, health care, childcare, housing subsidies.. are provided universally (sometimes even to immigrants because it's cheaper than dealing with the mess.) Our "social welfare" is employer-based...and the owners see no point in providing it if they're too busy planning the next buy out. Stock price has nothing to do with goods and services. It is essentially an addictive fiction...
Of course we have problems here in France and in the rest of Europe. But the scale of the problems in America dwarf the problems over here, even though the French are notoriously negative about the state of their country and the difficulties they face. There is a saying in Europe,"The French live in Paradise, but they all seem to think they are living in Hell!"
Here is a France 24 news channel program on the French system. Warning - you may never be content in America again if you watch it! 😬
But in terms of multi-national companies, particularly American companies operating in France and Europe, I have said before that all those companies operate under our laws. Their workers are only allowed to work 36 hours a week, have set break times and lunch hours, get at least 4 or 6 weeks holiday a year, and have generous protections where the company pays substantial sums if they are laid off, or the business is closed down, or if they are unfairly treated or discriminated against. Women get generous maternity leave, maternity pay, and their job has to be kept open. Men also get statutory maternity leave and benefits.
The companies themselves are controlled by strict and heavily enforced rules on pollution, sourcing ethical materials, cyber security, advertising, business practices, share dealing, and a host of things we call Fraud that you guys think of as normal. Etc, etc, etc.........
And yet, those American companies pay for all that stuff, put up with the rules and THEY MAKE DECENT PROFITS FOR THEIR SHAREHOLDERS!!!
So I have absolutely NO time for those assholes that believe the American way of business is the only way, because the evidence is all around.
Or indeed that socialism would destroy America. On the contrary, it could make America join the rest of the civilised world. Because unless you are rich in America and can buy the stuff we all take for granted, at the moment it really is not.
I am watching the video Az, and see a flaw, Only the working class pay into the Social security system (that leaves the investing class, the inheritance class, the entitled class not paying into the system, and as a result it is in the red and there is no way out, per French politics.
Not so. Companies pay around the same per head as people, and there are wealth taxes, inheritance taxes and a progressive income tax system. And everyone pays into the social security system.
I think it is a misinterpretation in language. Working class in France means anyone working, as opposed to unemployed, ill or retired. It isn't a judgement about social status, as it is in America.
Although France does have social classes, the higher levels in society are as much based on intelligence and achievement (academic, or contribution to French society) as on wealth. In fact many well-off French people will hide or play down their wealth, drive a modest car and live in a comfortable but unostentatious house.
For examples, firefighters are highly regarded and pushed to the head of a queue in, say a post office. Teachers too are considered highly, and well respected for their socially-valuable vocation.
It is also reflected in Gini coefficients, that offer an insight into class systems based on wealth. In France income inequality is around 31% but in America is about 46% - one of the worst of any country in the World and getting worse.
Where in Europe are they now getting better for the people? From what I am hearing, in the UK, the most basic services are increasingly falling apart due to Brexit.
Professor Reich: woah. i've read little about Carl Icahn and his monetary machinations, so this piece was a REAL EYE-OPENER. on one hand, i knew he was evil (all millionaires/billionaires are evil, that's how they become obscenely wealthy in the first place). but the methods employed to become so have not been on my radar. thanks for this informative piece, i now have one more thing to keep in mind.
that said, i wonder what "trump country" would think if they were aware of all this greedy double-dealing? what would they think, knowing Carl Icahn is taking them to the cleaners with his ponzi schemes, sucking up their money, and destroying their lives? i'd be LIVID if this happened to me, so i can only guess that the reason that trumpers are not similarly furious is due to ignorance or, if they do know, racism and misogyny.
My guess is that the trump country inhabitants are so thrown off by those childless cat ladies, illegal immigrants, and child killers, and the other people that trump and jd are busy scapegoating, that they don’t see the corporate raiders who are the actual ones stealing their jobs and degrading their lives. Just a thought…
There it is in a nutshell. The true perpetrators are playing the game of distract and then destroy via their obscene wealth. They are trying to turn us against each other to keep us from noticing the depth of their evil doings. We must not be distracted by MSM playing the same bits of biased ‘news‘ and poll results incessantly. We are all hyper– aware of the horrors running rampant in our world; wars, drought, genocides, mass shootings, climate catastrophies, etc. It is entirely overwhelming; yet to affect any change we must focus on the coming election and spread the word that if we have any hope of rounding up and prosecuting the criminals running our lives and remaining a great country, we must VOTE BLUE!
Why do you think that starting with the Regan years, public education has slowly been dismantled? I believe maga is composed of two groups: the uneducated, who do not have the basis to analyze or think their way out of a paper bag, and the 1% who want Trump in perpetuity for their financial gain.
Furthermore, our country upholds a malignant mental diagnosis as enviable. That is, narcissistic sociopathy. Sometimes called toxic masculinity, it is commonly found among male c-suite types, politicians, and the rich. How else to explain the amassing of wealth? How else to explain a continual need to increase one’s wealth? To paraphrase Mary Trump, how much is enough?
Our unfettered, late stage capitalism will kill the remains of our country.
GrrlScientist, the MAGAs are so enthralled with their orange messiah, they would happily give him every last cent they had. They would just tell you that the story about Carl Icahn was just fake news and never give it a second thought.
One more crazy thought. I finally thought to ask myself, what does JD actually stand for in JD Vance’s name. Turns out that JD stands for, wait for it….James Donald. Vance shared his middle and name with his biological father, Donald Ray (Bowman). Looks like JD is the mirror image of Donald J. JDT/ DJV. 2 sides of the same, sick coin.
Let me be clear about something...by neo, I do NOT mean new. What I mean is, is already here and has only just begun...we're at the earliest stage, which WILL only get worse unless we use our Democracy to stop it in it's tracks & reverse what the wannabe Kings/Lords have already stolen from the working class.
As the Talking Heads warn us in "Life During Wartime,"
"This ain't no party,
this ain't no disco,
This ain't no fooling around!"
These monsters have an INSATIABLE appetite for BOTH: Wealth & Control! TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY, before your children suffer the price.
I CRINGE while others discuss economic metrics that simply nolonger apply under our present circumstances. People KNOW they are suffering. Using these old metrics to defend Biden misses the Mark. YES, we're better off under Dems, but if you don't explain why nor explain how & why things will only get worse under Republicans, even in just the economic sense, we could fall into an economic trap most of us won't live long enough to see us ever get out of. It's ALREADY very bad.
We need to start expressing economics withing the framework of finite resources, diminishing resources, and % ownership of resources vs. currency.
The term neo-feudalism is useful and appropriate. We're seeing an increase in gated communities, private armies (excuse me, security) and home schooling, to the detriment of the common weal. What needs to be done is not to limit wealth accumulation, but to limit the ability to pass that wealth on to the next generation, to inhibit the development of a feudal aristocracy.
What James? You dare suggest that I can't cheat the grave by passing on all of my goodies to my mini me's Isn't that why we copulate? To breed replicants that carry on and enjoy the stuff we acquire? /s
Actually Flaury all you have to do is click on the three dots just below and to the right of your comment, then click on edit. Or review your post and correct all of the words underlined in red.
I know thats there. My options are share, hide, report. That's it. This was done with the phone app. Perhaps there are more options via www or maybe your membership comes with more benefits than mine. If I'm ever fortunate enough to be in the position to have the same standards as before (which is TMI), then I can use greater care in the future, but LIFE STUFF, so I've just had to learn to let the smaller stuff go, which hasn't been easy! Anyway, I'm aware of the 3 dots, but thank you! Sometimes these things DO get missed. Why no edit? Idk & lack the resources to find out, but will make a mental note in case it's a phone vs. PC thing. Thanks!
Shocking truth's again. Yesterday I read about thousands off lay off's without pay by Boeing. That still is an industrial and manufacturing monument. Problems of the company are big, because of the blurring frontiers between ownership and management. Quality in production costs money, so it is no priority. Customers are finding out.
Agree with your gloom. But swapping? The better words are suggested by Reich: blurring between ownership and management. Shareholders are owners of a piece of paper that is ascribed some value. But management is supposed to sell a product of quality.
Air travel involves risk. External conditions and the possibility of human error make it so. But nobody wants to fly in an aircraft that might not make it due to some stupid mechanical issue or construction flaw. And the Starliner disaster would support the argument that things haven't improved at Boeing.
Sorry but No, swapping is the right word. I witnessed this personally twice in my late career, when my engineer/scientist supervisors were replaced by MBAs with whom I could not discuss alternative technical approaches to solving the customer's problems because they did not know Jack Shit about science or engineering.
Dodge v. Ford Motor Co, Michigan 1919. the only purpose of a corporation is to provide a positive rate of return for investors. Not to produce a product of quality.
I agree with you Tom, but that is not the law nor the purpose of a corporation.
The U.S.A. had it's start as a Joint Venture Company, called the London Company of Viriginia, a group of lesser nobility, mechants ,and masters of guilds, pooled their money after prevailing upon King James I to grant them a charter to adventure into the new world, that part from the vanished community of Roanoke to what is now Maine, which was called Virginia, to explore for and exploit gold and silver. Chater was granted in1607, removed in 1624, and made a crown colony
Boeing, like all corporations, can't help themselves. The shareholders want a positive stream of investment returns, and most shares are owned by institutions. Investors have representatives on the Board of Directors whose mandate is to ensure a positive rate of return, not only positive, but better than the last quarters profit and loss.
To achieve their goal, the board hires a CEO, COO, CFO, etc to achieve that goal, the CEO has one mandate, one job, or else he or she is out of a job, and that is to produce a positive rate of return, and one better than the last quarter. If they do, they get bonuses, if they don't they get fired, if they consistently under perform.
The system motivates them to cut variable costs (labor) and costs of materials. And the result, accidents that cost lives. And the cost is not born by the company, but by the insurer, but that raises premiums, which are tax deductible, and the expense of profiteering is born by the public who pays taxes.
The way that Boeing or any other corporation is hurt for producing a faulty and unsound product is by a reduction in consumer demand.
so long as there was a demand for Boeing Aircraft there was no motivation to change.
And even then the profit motive has driven a lot of corporations into bankruptcy.
It is quite a change in corporate ethos and mentality, the founder of Boeing said that he would rather shutter the doors than produce one unsafe airplane.
The last real CEO of Boeing was T.A. Wilson in the 1980's. He lived modestly in a middle class home, and when he had conferences or entertained he rented a conference room at Double Tree Inn in Renton.
The current crop of CEO's are experienced at doing one thing, and one thing only, reducing costs.
The repeal of the Glass Steagall act in 1999 and the rolling back part of the Dodd Frank Act in 2018 are major reasons for this lawlessness. I think 1/4 billion dollars is enough for anyone, so I would cap total wealth in the US at $250,000,000. We are headed for another October 1929 since most of the restrictive laws passed in the 30's have been overturned or seriously weakened.
Robert R why not include in your article the huge damage done by private equity and hedge funds accumulating vast swaths of America’s single , multi-family and other income-producing housing to flip or otherwise squeeze out ordinary citizens? Why no regulations/laws tightening or preventing this activity? The media silence on this flagrant action is deafening.
Have to believe RR you’ve written about this issue. If not, go for it!
Telling title, centering around "American." However, Capitalism has never worked for masses in the Global South; in the final stage of capitalism, it's not working for the masses in the US, either.
whether the Americans can get over the word "social" without half the country screaming "communism" due to past indoctrination remains to be seen
populism (ie system that would also favor the masses) is again a loaded word and couldnt ever pass as an alternative system
Maybe the best would be the stakeholder capitalism Prof Reich favors... but the "stakeholders" are still so easy to overlook and forget like history shows
Or perhaps something like Chestertonian distributism, but on a bigger scale and stripped of its overtly Catholic connotations. Mega-mergers often help market efficiency, but a single earthquake, or pandemic, or agricultural plague puts all of us in jeopardy.
the same half of the country would also froth at "distibutism" :P
Mega-mergers are market efficient... but market efficiency is good only for the company while the greater monopoly power it allows harms ALL other stakeholders (workers, suppliers, producers, consumers...)
At some point in time people will need to stop considering education, climate and healthcare to be redistribution... but an investment for the society as a whole
but for that a lot more education needs to be done to help the next generations reach that point....
Unfortunately the necessary change is always hindered by those with power since they dont want competition or smart massess... they want minimally educated sheep to control and all "excessive" education is sold as unwanted "redistribution" (read taxes) or excessive costs harming the bottom line and reserved only for the upper echelons who can afford the best (as is their self-perceived "right")
Bingo! But I'm not so sure that it's half the country anymore. COVID and normal mortality have diminished MAGAstan since the last national election and not enough MAGAts are being produced to replace those who have gone away. We'll see soon enough.
my first opinion is that normal people wouldnt need labels...
but from what i see across the pond, your situation is so particular that any progressive idea (ie Bernie, now Reich, possibly Kamala) immediately gets labaeled socialist or communist and dismissed by ~half the country without any consideration of the merit of the idea
american politics became so loaded and polarized that untill you can make the common people use a non loaded new term to describe the progressive capitalism, all discussion with the other side will stop after communism cry
In my personal opinion the stakeholder capitalism is not different enough from the current status quo ... (and currently democrats are blamed for not helping the little people enough, and this is not actually far from truth again in my view)
This neccesitates the so called progressives to offer something new with a catchy name that could both help people on the raitional level, but also appeal to the masses on the gut level... and that unfortunately means having some buzzword like MAGA which fired a lot of hearts irrationally but undeniably efficiently
unless you can utilize the same tools, and only focus on the rationallity of voters, in the long term it will not be enough
Trump won on empty words
Sanders lost despite having great ideas
Now progressives need to sell great ideas with at least some specific words capable of motivating the masses on the gut level to the similar extent... "stakeholder capitalism" is simply not as catchy as MAGA
The impact of raiders like Carl Icahn is not limited to the companies that they seize control of. I spent almost twenty years at Motorola and the threat of an Icahn raid was an ever present shadow over the way that company was run for many of those years. Stock buy backs and ruthless cost cutting to try to satisfy these “activist” shareholders led directly to the demise of that once great American company. If you survey the landscape of American corporations today you will find a dominant group think around cost cutting and off-shoring that is a direct consequence of this fixation on stock price rather than stock value and a total lack of concern about workers and the communities that have allowed those corporations to grow and become successful.
Trump maga are unaware that the man they are supporting will be the same person that takes their job away and puts them in the poor house - greed does kill - Trump and his kind like Icahn are only about greed - they don’t care how many lives on earth they ruin - but there will be a reckoning soon.
Greed of a few is what is killing the average American. Greed in corporations, Greed in healthcare and a Greed based economy! Mutualist Capitalism is the way to go. A healthy economy based on profit sharing and prosperity for all. Sadly, these greed driven profiteers have their champion in tfg. TFG should never been allowed into power as his business interests were always going to be in conflict with his ability to do his job as president. He is the Greedmaster in Chief! Driven not by helping all prosper but just a few and himself to prosper! Thanks Robert for an enlightening article shedding light on yet another greedy capitalist!
Bravo! This is a story that needs telling in detail. Working people have lost most of their pensions as a result of the Private Equity firms. That's the tip of the iceberg. Donald Trump uses misdirection on this point. He blames illegal aliens for what the Private Equity firms have done to our economy. While people are worried about border security, Private Equity firms buy their local hospitals. They either close the hospital or raise prices, depending on which makes more money for the General Partners. Meanwhile, they lay off nurses. Patient care deteriorates, but all Fox News reports is border security. Donald Trump claims that his tariffs will cause people to build factories in the United States. Who are these mystery people? Not the Private Equity firms, they have either destroyed U.S. jobs or exported them. This is like when Donald Trump claimed that Covid would go away, and instead it killed 1.2 million Americans. Changing the subject, one way the so-called mainstream media is helping Donald Trump is giving air time to Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton is a great American, but people hate her. The more they see her, the more they vote against Kamala Harris.
Professor Reich, I had never heard of Carl Icahan until I read this article. What an absolutely evil man! I wholeheartedly agree that for Americans' sake we must return to Stakeholder Capitalism. These 'corporate raiders' are as much to blame for the problems middle Americans are facing as much as anything else. I have preached and preached to my conservative friends about Stakeholder Capitalism vs Shareholder Capitalism and can finally see some light shining through. I intend to discuss this Carl Icahan as another reason we need to return to Stakeholder Capitalism if we want our country to improve. Vote blue, America, up and down the ballot!
Icahn is the Gordon Gecko of American capitalism. Just how many yachts can you waterski behind? Americas working class probably doesn’t even know how this works or is too busy or lazy to investigate unfortunately. The system is and has always been rigged against them. It’s high time we elect a governmental leadership that recognizes the American workers contributions to the success of our biggest corporations and stops their bigoted views of non executive personnel as a number on their balance sheets.
Basically, American capitalism has been gamed in multiple ways since the late 1970s, starting with Jimmy Carter's deregulatory schemes, then accelerating with Ronald Reagan and continuing under Bill Clinton. And now with the invalidation by the Supreme Court of the Chevron doctrine, we are about to enter another stage in the rich-get-richer scheme of things. Dr Reich, I look forward to further articles from you on this topic but, I hope, some will focus on the structural reforms that are desperately needed to make the US a far fairer, less corrupt society.
Adam, what I could never understand was why in the world any president would work to deregulate and get rid of the Chevron doctrine. They were in place as guardrails to keep these huge corporations from running roughshod over the American citizens.
Hi Peggy, I am not sure which President you are referring to here. I believe that the Chevron doctrine came in in about 1980-82 but I do not not know of any President who asked that it be invalidated. (That, however, is probably just my own ignorance.) Carter began the deregulation stuff but I do not remember him being particularly vocal about its importance. Ronald Reagan certainly was and Bill Clinton carried on in that spirit but I think quietly. What is clear is that the GOP and its rich donors hated this rule and have wanted to get rid of it, I suspect for decades. It is also clear that if Trump becomes President again, he will use the new Supreme Court ruling against it as a rationale for undoing much of the regulations that have been put in place to protect the pubic and that he will dismantle much of the civil service to do so, as Project 2025 promises.
You need to review the Chevron doctrine. The Supreme Court reversal simply says that judges have a responsibility to interpret laws passed by Congress. The earlier Chevron decision said only a bureaucratic expert was qualified to interpret law and write regulations, i.e. we only had two branches of Federal government, not three. And maybe only one if Congress was lazy.
Personally, I like the idea that a judge should be able to weigh in on the meaning of a law which may be vague as passed. I want you and any citizen to read and express your opinion of something buried in a 1000-page document passed in haste followed by a statement, "You will have to pass it to find out what is in it" (Nancy Pelosi on the Obamacare bill). Otherwise, we end up with a nation of the lawyers, by the lawyers, and for the lawyers.
Corporate control of politicians and much of the media.
Yes. A lot of RR’s solutions, while good, are bandaids on a hemorrhaging system.
You want unelected judicial bureaucrats deciding whether your prescription medication is safe and effective?
No, I want the scientists working under the relevant governmental agency, in this case the FDA, making those determinations and then passing on their recommendations to their bosses who will make the rule. I most definitely do not want either Congressman or judges being called on to make such decisions, because they do not have the requisite knowledge. Sorry to have to point this out but we live in an advanced, complicated, technologically advanced society and we need people who actually know something in order to make informed decisions.
Your choice is to be ignorant and personally irresponsible outside or your own fields, leaving it to unelected bureaucrats and the President (Stalin and Lysenko perhaps or Collins and Fauci?) to control your life. Let's get rid of judges and Congress and go straight to a totalitarian government. Is that what you are saying? Do your really think that scientists, or "their bosses" who depend on government taxes for their income produce only work that is pure and unbiased? Pretty naive, but I know you are not alone.
Apparently you cannot read, or at least what I wrote, so sorry for you.
Totally agree.
I absolutely prefer expert civil servants supervised by the duly elected president to ignorant judicial political partisans to make critical policy decisions that require expertise.
So you would have us at mercy of corporations whose sole reason for existence is to maximize shareholder profits, at any c st,including the health of society, and individuals.
IOW Karl Marx says that it is OK to lie, Cheat, Steal in the pursuit of shareholder profits.
Government agencies are responsible to the public, corporations ae responsible to the shareholders.
Whose interests are served when shareholders can do whatever they please.
Maybe you should read up a little about the health, safety and life of the public and workers before government regulation.
I'm glad that the ovum which your fathers sperm penetrated was aged.
Is that an insult ? Truly pathetic !
Your defending Karl Marx?
The best part of you ran down your fathers leg.
All good, Robert. But the $500-odd million paid into Kamala's campaign fund is surely buying something, and I'd be happy to bet it is the leave the rich donors and their tax breaks alone.
I expect Kamala to do many good things if she gets to be President, especially if the Dems can capture both House and Senate, but at the end of the 4 years I really, really doubt that there will be any meaningful change to the way the system of America's Capitalism for the Rich actually works.
In many other countries, like here in Europe, the corporations work for society at large, and are taxed and regulated for the benefit of all citizens. All good.
But in America, society is only there to work for the corporations, so you are only relevant to them if you are an employee, a customer or an investor. Anyone else is not just irrelevant, but treated as a parasite on corporate profits through the tax system.
I really, really doubt America will ever manage to turn that around.
You are right. Look at voting roll calls in Congress. For example, whenever Congress manages to propose a bill to close an obvious tax loophole for trusts to facilitate inherited wealth, republicans vote against it en masse, but there are democrats, as well, so in the slim majorities in our government, it cannot pass. When well over 99% of our House and Senate become millionaires, why do you think this will be forevermore.?
You are right for exactly the reasons you give - all politicians are in it for themselves and 'turkeys don't vote for Thanksgiving"!
It is not over 99% of our congress critters that are millionaires, but the majority are
https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/04/majority-of-lawmakers-millionaires/
Well it’s nice to know her opposition’s policy positions are so good… Wait? What? Never mind Geeesch!
It would be nice to think that Kamala will do good things, but to do so, she would have to get elected. That is by no means a sure thing, even with a $500 million war chest, for several reasons, but an important one is the fact that, while the rate of inflation has gone down, prices have not, and people are struggling as a result... And the tax credits that Kamala offers are not going to help the average Joe. The only thing that I can think of that would help would be a massive increase in the food stamp benefits program, an expansion whose need could be explained by the monopolistic prices, and which would prove that government can be responsive to the needs of the people that result. The subsidies would sunset as wages catch up to the cost of living- which is to say that people would gradually climb out of the program when their income increased, which would be assisted by an increase in the minimum wage. This might also get people to understand that a vote for Trump would put the problem of corporate greed on steroids.
Being in Europe, you will be in the front lines if Trump gets elected and appeases Putin, who would thus win the war in Ukraine in early 2025 with his dreams of dominating Europe, and the world still intact, and with America bankrupt as a result of the next round of tax cuts for the rich, and at war with itself. Ironically, the war would probably end in November if Kamala gets elected, because that is the only way that Russia will be able to save its oil production capability, which it will be losing this winter due to lack of use during a Siberian winter. It will take decades for Russia to get back to its previous oil production even then.
One group that is pretty much always ignored, and suffering terribly right now are seniors. As of 2022, there were 57.8 million adults aged 65 and older in the United States, which is 17.3% of the total population. This includes 31.9 million women and 25.9 million men. Social security isn't nearly cutting it anymore. For example, I am trying to suvive on $12K/year. Retirement income? You must be joking. For many of us, wages were flat from 1970 on, and "saving for retirement"--something easy to say but difficult to do--was nearly impossible. Seniors who did have retirement money are blowing through it at an increased rate, given the recent spike in "greedflation." Harris has said she'd like to increase SS payments by $200/month. If she manages to get that done--something Bernie Sanders has been trying to achieve for years!--maybe I'll finally be able to get my teeth cleaned again or buy new glasses. In the meantime, I watch from the sidelines, angry that I'm too old to work full time anymore and terrified about what will happen to me and other seniors in the next few years.
I feel this is another example of corporations winning. Ending what used to be more common practice with pensions and instead saying the government will take care of our elders and now that feels like a scam. We need to get back to an economy that is about the workers. And I believe that would increase revenue into SS which would allow for raises for our seniors currently needing their hard earned retirement. Thank you for spreading this message. $12k/he is clearly not enough for anyone, just to buy food or pay for gasoline, not including any healthcare, rent/housing, transportation, taxes, etc.
I hear you! I am still working part time and trying to religiously save. Taxes are too high for most and benefits are too low. Worst of all, try to get another job? Anyone who thinks age discrimination is not real- tell me where you work. Those college degrees and certificates mean nothing. Recently I volunteered to help with a group for political campaign public education efforts. I heard nothing back! Not even the courtesy of a response. Given my experience, it seems to me there is a wealth of untapped knowledge and experience waiting for opportunities.
Kprez: I'm on Medicare, but had a secondary through a former employer, CalPers. it was a Platinum Medicare PPO supplement. I received notice that my premium would go up 30.7%, Meaning I would actually have to pay CalPers if I kept the insurance. So I canceled, I am fortunate in that I also have Tricare for life, it was my tertiary, now it is my secondary.
I am fortunate, I made some good, but hard choices when I was young. Then again growing up poor I looked to the future and planned my life accordingly.
Never the less I feel for other seniors who have to make a choice between nutrition and medical care.
My sister died last April, she had lung cancer and gall bladder problems as well as another cancer. All she had was Medicare, she paid $35 a month for the hospital bill that Medicare doesn't cover (20%), she had sold her house to her grandson for a nominal fee, so that the debt collector could not come after her estate which was zero when she died.
How many millions of people die every year because they can't afford medical insurance. Gig workers, construction workers.
I know two men who worked in construction, they don't now, they worked until their hands got mangled in an accident,and they could not longer wield a hammer.
Ironically they are Trump voters.
They take one look at you and think "I can take advantage of this old fart." Once you're a senior, you cease to be a valuable assset. You're just old. If they hire you, and that's a big if, you get offered a terrible wage, nothing even close to what you made in your prime. Yes, agism definitely exists. I started running into it at sixty!
f you are 50 or over, you are virtually unemployable, except may bagging at Krogers or greeting at WalMart
Ageism is rampant in America. Poorly regulated corporations dismiss older workers and replace them with younger, cheaper models and they do it with impunity.
After 20 years on the job, my wife, at age 50, was finally making an acceptable salary. Progress reports of her fine work had boosted her salary during those years and the benefits were good.
Then, from out of left field she is laid off for a “reduction in force” according to her employer.
After 20 years working there, of course she maintains many relationships with current employees. They were only too glad to inform her that her replacement, a fresh faced college graduate, was hired a month later…for far less money and less benefits.
This is how they do!
They got rid of greeters at Walmart in 2019.
Except for gasoline, because of competition, the prices never go down. Food is a necessity, in economic terms, it faces and inelastic demand. and there is no competition in the processed food industry,. the processed food industry is dominated by five food giants, and they either conspire, or have convinced people via advertising to prefer one brand over another
I remember when gas was 29 cents a gallon and a Clark Bar was 5 cents, Gas is now $3 to $5 a gallon and a Clark Bar is $1.49, and the Clark Bar is smaller than it was at $.05
The only way to have prices go down is to stop buying the product. But the consumer is his or her own worst enemy.
On the other hand manufacturers will dispose of unsought and unsold product, rather than reduce prices, and take the loss as a tax write off., because the Chamber of Commerce lobbyists have written our tax laws.
Well said!
Az, I like the system you have in Europe. I would hope that when Kamala gets in the White House, she will tackle this problem and work on correcting it. It will not happen overnight but she does have Lina Kahn and others working hard to fix some of it right now. Vote blue, America, up and down the ballot!
Just so you know what you guys are missing.
https://youtu.be/aCsgzUriC8o?feature=shared
As I keep saying to all those that think Kamala has already won, the polls are still 50/50 within the 4% margin of error, and the last debate has barely made them twitch. Apparently almost all voters had already made up their minds, so there won't be a landslide, it is highly unlikely that Kamala will win both Senate and House, and Trump will contest every result leasing to months of court cases. And that's last one is the better scenario - he could easily try for a coup!
As for the Ukraine War, my concern is that America is lined up for involvement in 3 wars right now; Ukraine with NATO (currently seems inevitable), a Middle East war on the side of Israel and Saudi against Iran and Hamas, and perhaps a Far East action when China invades Taiwan (that may also trigger North Korea attacking the South).
One reason friends of mine in Europe actually prefer Trump is because they think he will keep America out of all three conflicts, de-escalating and so avoiding WW3. Of course that will pander to Putin, Xi and Kim Jong Un, which is exactly what Trump would do for his best mates, and leaves Ukraine, Taiwan and South Korea completely shafted.
I suspect many Americans may be making the same calculation. As I would if I lived in America, particularly if I had a 20-year-old son, for example!
If Trump wins, the chances of war are still the same,only greater, because Putin will take over Ukraine, rest,rebuild, replenish (maybe) and take over Moldova and Lithuania, the Baltic States and then Poland.
China certainly invade Taiwan, and North Korea the South, and even Trump will be hard pressed to keep us out of those wars.
The deterrent to war is fear by the aggressor, and Trump removes that fear., and gives them license to proceed.
If Trump wins, he will fulfill his promises to revenge,punish and deport and America will overnight become a third world nation, demoralized, deconstructed at war with itself, and that alone will give Putin the breathing space and opportunity he needs to run through Europe.
Europe has demilitarized, it no longer has the industrial capability to support an arms industry much like produce enough munitions to fight a sustained battle, meanwhile Russia, because of the experience in Ukraine is rebuilding and ramping up theirs.
Putin does not have any countervailing force, no public restraints to impede his militarization, he has in effect revived Stalinist Russia
I am sure that nothing moves without everyone knowing about it.
No Doubt Az that Putin would have to stop, to replenish and rebuild, but as regards cannon fodder, humans are a self renewing resource.
Russia isn't China, but back during the Soviet Sino war (do you remember that), it was estimated that if Russia wiped out the leading ranks of a Chinese Army thy losses would be constantly replenished from behind, and by sheer numbers the Chinese would be in Moscow.
Putin has the full resources of the "Republics", and Siberia is not empty,in fact both Stalin and Putin have used the Asiatic tribes in Siberia as human fodder in their human waves.
I don't credit Putin with enough forward thinking to consider the disruption of AMOC (Atlantic Meridonal Overturning Circulation) as a threat, especially as it doesn't benefit Russia, Western Europe and England are the beneficiares of the AMOC.
I don't credit Putin with thinking any further ahead than his own needs and desire to go down in history as Vladimir the great,alongside Peter and Katherine, and I suspect that he is one of 16.6666 % of Russians that is a descendant of Jenghis Khan. he sure acts like it
I would not suggest Putin is stupid, he just isn't capable of thinking long term, anymore than our billionaires who fund Trump are able. It is the present that they live in, that preoccupies them. They and frankly most people don't even give the future or consequences a nod.
When I was 17 I planned for my retirement. And today I plan for a future which may not arrive, after all I am 85
As regards hitting inside of Russia, I blame Jake Sullivan for Biden's decision not to support Zelensky.
Either Jake is a timid soul or he is a Putin Asset. I hope Harris gets rid of him, and most of Biden's advisers, and especially the current Trump humping staff of Secret Service.
Thanks for the education on the Russian sea route to the Baltic. they still have to sail past
Sweden and Denmark though
Gloomy for sure. But Europe is not devoid of the same problems...these are all multinational remember. It is that they are draped over a frame of what we here call socialism...basic social services and education, health care, childcare, housing subsidies.. are provided universally (sometimes even to immigrants because it's cheaper than dealing with the mess.) Our "social welfare" is employer-based...and the owners see no point in providing it if they're too busy planning the next buy out. Stock price has nothing to do with goods and services. It is essentially an addictive fiction...
Of course we have problems here in France and in the rest of Europe. But the scale of the problems in America dwarf the problems over here, even though the French are notoriously negative about the state of their country and the difficulties they face. There is a saying in Europe,"The French live in Paradise, but they all seem to think they are living in Hell!"
Here is a France 24 news channel program on the French system. Warning - you may never be content in America again if you watch it! 😬
https://youtu.be/aCsgzUriC8o?feature=shared
But in terms of multi-national companies, particularly American companies operating in France and Europe, I have said before that all those companies operate under our laws. Their workers are only allowed to work 36 hours a week, have set break times and lunch hours, get at least 4 or 6 weeks holiday a year, and have generous protections where the company pays substantial sums if they are laid off, or the business is closed down, or if they are unfairly treated or discriminated against. Women get generous maternity leave, maternity pay, and their job has to be kept open. Men also get statutory maternity leave and benefits.
The companies themselves are controlled by strict and heavily enforced rules on pollution, sourcing ethical materials, cyber security, advertising, business practices, share dealing, and a host of things we call Fraud that you guys think of as normal. Etc, etc, etc.........
And yet, those American companies pay for all that stuff, put up with the rules and THEY MAKE DECENT PROFITS FOR THEIR SHAREHOLDERS!!!
So I have absolutely NO time for those assholes that believe the American way of business is the only way, because the evidence is all around.
Or indeed that socialism would destroy America. On the contrary, it could make America join the rest of the civilised world. Because unless you are rich in America and can buy the stuff we all take for granted, at the moment it really is not.
Just my view. Enjoy the YouTube video!
I am watching the video Az, and see a flaw, Only the working class pay into the Social security system (that leaves the investing class, the inheritance class, the entitled class not paying into the system, and as a result it is in the red and there is no way out, per French politics.
Not so. Companies pay around the same per head as people, and there are wealth taxes, inheritance taxes and a progressive income tax system. And everyone pays into the social security system.
That is not what your video said at the beginning, it said that Social security was paid for by the working class.
I think it is a misinterpretation in language. Working class in France means anyone working, as opposed to unemployed, ill or retired. It isn't a judgement about social status, as it is in America.
Although France does have social classes, the higher levels in society are as much based on intelligence and achievement (academic, or contribution to French society) as on wealth. In fact many well-off French people will hide or play down their wealth, drive a modest car and live in a comfortable but unostentatious house.
For examples, firefighters are highly regarded and pushed to the head of a queue in, say a post office. Teachers too are considered highly, and well respected for their socially-valuable vocation.
It is also reflected in Gini coefficients, that offer an insight into class systems based on wealth. In France income inequality is around 31% but in America is about 46% - one of the worst of any country in the World and getting worse.
Where in Europe are they now getting better for the people? From what I am hearing, in the UK, the most basic services are increasingly falling apart due to Brexit.
Professor Reich: woah. i've read little about Carl Icahn and his monetary machinations, so this piece was a REAL EYE-OPENER. on one hand, i knew he was evil (all millionaires/billionaires are evil, that's how they become obscenely wealthy in the first place). but the methods employed to become so have not been on my radar. thanks for this informative piece, i now have one more thing to keep in mind.
that said, i wonder what "trump country" would think if they were aware of all this greedy double-dealing? what would they think, knowing Carl Icahn is taking them to the cleaners with his ponzi schemes, sucking up their money, and destroying their lives? i'd be LIVID if this happened to me, so i can only guess that the reason that trumpers are not similarly furious is due to ignorance or, if they do know, racism and misogyny.
My guess is that the trump country inhabitants are so thrown off by those childless cat ladies, illegal immigrants, and child killers, and the other people that trump and jd are busy scapegoating, that they don’t see the corporate raiders who are the actual ones stealing their jobs and degrading their lives. Just a thought…
There it is in a nutshell. The true perpetrators are playing the game of distract and then destroy via their obscene wealth. They are trying to turn us against each other to keep us from noticing the depth of their evil doings. We must not be distracted by MSM playing the same bits of biased ‘news‘ and poll results incessantly. We are all hyper– aware of the horrors running rampant in our world; wars, drought, genocides, mass shootings, climate catastrophies, etc. It is entirely overwhelming; yet to affect any change we must focus on the coming election and spread the word that if we have any hope of rounding up and prosecuting the criminals running our lives and remaining a great country, we must VOTE BLUE!
Why do you think that starting with the Regan years, public education has slowly been dismantled? I believe maga is composed of two groups: the uneducated, who do not have the basis to analyze or think their way out of a paper bag, and the 1% who want Trump in perpetuity for their financial gain.
Furthermore, our country upholds a malignant mental diagnosis as enviable. That is, narcissistic sociopathy. Sometimes called toxic masculinity, it is commonly found among male c-suite types, politicians, and the rich. How else to explain the amassing of wealth? How else to explain a continual need to increase one’s wealth? To paraphrase Mary Trump, how much is enough?
Our unfettered, late stage capitalism will kill the remains of our country.
😔
GrrlScientist, the MAGAs are so enthralled with their orange messiah, they would happily give him every last cent they had. They would just tell you that the story about Carl Icahn was just fake news and never give it a second thought.
One more crazy thought. I finally thought to ask myself, what does JD actually stand for in JD Vance’s name. Turns out that JD stands for, wait for it….James Donald. Vance shared his middle and name with his biological father, Donald Ray (Bowman). Looks like JD is the mirror image of Donald J. JDT/ DJV. 2 sides of the same, sick coin.
MAGAs who would learn about this would only be disappointed about the fact that they weren’t in on it to make a buck.
From one Economist, to another,
In a word: NEO-FEUDALISM
Let me be clear about something...by neo, I do NOT mean new. What I mean is, is already here and has only just begun...we're at the earliest stage, which WILL only get worse unless we use our Democracy to stop it in it's tracks & reverse what the wannabe Kings/Lords have already stolen from the working class.
As the Talking Heads warn us in "Life During Wartime,"
"This ain't no party,
this ain't no disco,
This ain't no fooling around!"
These monsters have an INSATIABLE appetite for BOTH: Wealth & Control! TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY, before your children suffer the price.
I CRINGE while others discuss economic metrics that simply nolonger apply under our present circumstances. People KNOW they are suffering. Using these old metrics to defend Biden misses the Mark. YES, we're better off under Dems, but if you don't explain why nor explain how & why things will only get worse under Republicans, even in just the economic sense, we could fall into an economic trap most of us won't live long enough to see us ever get out of. It's ALREADY very bad.
We need to start expressing economics withing the framework of finite resources, diminishing resources, and % ownership of resources vs. currency.
The term neo-feudalism is useful and appropriate. We're seeing an increase in gated communities, private armies (excuse me, security) and home schooling, to the detriment of the common weal. What needs to be done is not to limit wealth accumulation, but to limit the ability to pass that wealth on to the next generation, to inhibit the development of a feudal aristocracy.
What James? You dare suggest that I can't cheat the grave by passing on all of my goodies to my mini me's Isn't that why we copulate? To breed replicants that carry on and enjoy the stuff we acquire? /s
Sorry for they typos.Substack isn't exactly edit-friendly.
Actually Flaury all you have to do is click on the three dots just below and to the right of your comment, then click on edit. Or review your post and correct all of the words underlined in red.
I know thats there. My options are share, hide, report. That's it. This was done with the phone app. Perhaps there are more options via www or maybe your membership comes with more benefits than mine. If I'm ever fortunate enough to be in the position to have the same standards as before (which is TMI), then I can use greater care in the future, but LIFE STUFF, so I've just had to learn to let the smaller stuff go, which hasn't been easy! Anyway, I'm aware of the 3 dots, but thank you! Sometimes these things DO get missed. Why no edit? Idk & lack the resources to find out, but will make a mental note in case it's a phone vs. PC thing. Thanks!
@RobertReich hoping & praying you see my contribution here.
Greed kills
Shocking truth's again. Yesterday I read about thousands off lay off's without pay by Boeing. That still is an industrial and manufacturing monument. Problems of the company are big, because of the blurring frontiers between ownership and management. Quality in production costs money, so it is no priority. Customers are finding out.
Swapping out engineers for financiers has damaged Boeing enormously. I'm not sure it will ever recover.
Agree with your gloom. But swapping? The better words are suggested by Reich: blurring between ownership and management. Shareholders are owners of a piece of paper that is ascribed some value. But management is supposed to sell a product of quality.
Air travel involves risk. External conditions and the possibility of human error make it so. But nobody wants to fly in an aircraft that might not make it due to some stupid mechanical issue or construction flaw. And the Starliner disaster would support the argument that things haven't improved at Boeing.
Sorry but No, swapping is the right word. I witnessed this personally twice in my late career, when my engineer/scientist supervisors were replaced by MBAs with whom I could not discuss alternative technical approaches to solving the customer's problems because they did not know Jack Shit about science or engineering.
Dodge v. Ford Motor Co, Michigan 1919. the only purpose of a corporation is to provide a positive rate of return for investors. Not to produce a product of quality.
I agree with you Tom, but that is not the law nor the purpose of a corporation.
The U.S.A. had it's start as a Joint Venture Company, called the London Company of Viriginia, a group of lesser nobility, mechants ,and masters of guilds, pooled their money after prevailing upon King James I to grant them a charter to adventure into the new world, that part from the vanished community of Roanoke to what is now Maine, which was called Virginia, to explore for and exploit gold and silver. Chater was granted in1607, removed in 1624, and made a crown colony
Boeing, like all corporations, can't help themselves. The shareholders want a positive stream of investment returns, and most shares are owned by institutions. Investors have representatives on the Board of Directors whose mandate is to ensure a positive rate of return, not only positive, but better than the last quarters profit and loss.
To achieve their goal, the board hires a CEO, COO, CFO, etc to achieve that goal, the CEO has one mandate, one job, or else he or she is out of a job, and that is to produce a positive rate of return, and one better than the last quarter. If they do, they get bonuses, if they don't they get fired, if they consistently under perform.
The system motivates them to cut variable costs (labor) and costs of materials. And the result, accidents that cost lives. And the cost is not born by the company, but by the insurer, but that raises premiums, which are tax deductible, and the expense of profiteering is born by the public who pays taxes.
The way that Boeing or any other corporation is hurt for producing a faulty and unsound product is by a reduction in consumer demand.
so long as there was a demand for Boeing Aircraft there was no motivation to change.
And even then the profit motive has driven a lot of corporations into bankruptcy.
It is quite a change in corporate ethos and mentality, the founder of Boeing said that he would rather shutter the doors than produce one unsafe airplane.
The last real CEO of Boeing was T.A. Wilson in the 1980's. He lived modestly in a middle class home, and when he had conferences or entertained he rented a conference room at Double Tree Inn in Renton.
The current crop of CEO's are experienced at doing one thing, and one thing only, reducing costs.
The repeal of the Glass Steagall act in 1999 and the rolling back part of the Dodd Frank Act in 2018 are major reasons for this lawlessness. I think 1/4 billion dollars is enough for anyone, so I would cap total wealth in the US at $250,000,000. We are headed for another October 1929 since most of the restrictive laws passed in the 30's have been overturned or seriously weakened.
Robert R why not include in your article the huge damage done by private equity and hedge funds accumulating vast swaths of America’s single , multi-family and other income-producing housing to flip or otherwise squeeze out ordinary citizens? Why no regulations/laws tightening or preventing this activity? The media silence on this flagrant action is deafening.
Have to believe RR you’ve written about this issue. If not, go for it!
Good idea.
It sounds like the CEOs read Trump’s book , “How To Ripoff The Average American”! Sarcasm
Telling title, centering around "American." However, Capitalism has never worked for masses in the Global South; in the final stage of capitalism, it's not working for the masses in the US, either.
it is in the title... it works for the capitalists... not the massess
the same as feudalism which worked for feudal lords and not for the plebs
obviously socialism in its forms (extreme forms?) like no private ownership or central planning of everything doesnt work for anyone....
but what needs to be done is to "invent" another way that is more centralistic than either
but all good ideas were already thought of by someone and a quick google finds https://www.socialcapitalresearch.com/what-is-social-capitalism-2/
whether the Americans can get over the word "social" without half the country screaming "communism" due to past indoctrination remains to be seen
populism (ie system that would also favor the masses) is again a loaded word and couldnt ever pass as an alternative system
Maybe the best would be the stakeholder capitalism Prof Reich favors... but the "stakeholders" are still so easy to overlook and forget like history shows
Or perhaps something like Chestertonian distributism, but on a bigger scale and stripped of its overtly Catholic connotations. Mega-mergers often help market efficiency, but a single earthquake, or pandemic, or agricultural plague puts all of us in jeopardy.
the same half of the country would also froth at "distibutism" :P
Mega-mergers are market efficient... but market efficiency is good only for the company while the greater monopoly power it allows harms ALL other stakeholders (workers, suppliers, producers, consumers...)
At some point in time people will need to stop considering education, climate and healthcare to be redistribution... but an investment for the society as a whole
but for that a lot more education needs to be done to help the next generations reach that point....
Unfortunately the necessary change is always hindered by those with power since they dont want competition or smart massess... they want minimally educated sheep to control and all "excessive" education is sold as unwanted "redistribution" (read taxes) or excessive costs harming the bottom line and reserved only for the upper echelons who can afford the best (as is their self-perceived "right")
Bingo! But I'm not so sure that it's half the country anymore. COVID and normal mortality have diminished MAGAstan since the last national election and not enough MAGAts are being produced to replace those who have gone away. We'll see soon enough.
my first opinion is that normal people wouldnt need labels...
but from what i see across the pond, your situation is so particular that any progressive idea (ie Bernie, now Reich, possibly Kamala) immediately gets labaeled socialist or communist and dismissed by ~half the country without any consideration of the merit of the idea
american politics became so loaded and polarized that untill you can make the common people use a non loaded new term to describe the progressive capitalism, all discussion with the other side will stop after communism cry
In my personal opinion the stakeholder capitalism is not different enough from the current status quo ... (and currently democrats are blamed for not helping the little people enough, and this is not actually far from truth again in my view)
This neccesitates the so called progressives to offer something new with a catchy name that could both help people on the raitional level, but also appeal to the masses on the gut level... and that unfortunately means having some buzzword like MAGA which fired a lot of hearts irrationally but undeniably efficiently
unless you can utilize the same tools, and only focus on the rationallity of voters, in the long term it will not be enough
Trump won on empty words
Sanders lost despite having great ideas
Now progressives need to sell great ideas with at least some specific words capable of motivating the masses on the gut level to the similar extent... "stakeholder capitalism" is simply not as catchy as MAGA
The impact of raiders like Carl Icahn is not limited to the companies that they seize control of. I spent almost twenty years at Motorola and the threat of an Icahn raid was an ever present shadow over the way that company was run for many of those years. Stock buy backs and ruthless cost cutting to try to satisfy these “activist” shareholders led directly to the demise of that once great American company. If you survey the landscape of American corporations today you will find a dominant group think around cost cutting and off-shoring that is a direct consequence of this fixation on stock price rather than stock value and a total lack of concern about workers and the communities that have allowed those corporations to grow and become successful.
Trump maga are unaware that the man they are supporting will be the same person that takes their job away and puts them in the poor house - greed does kill - Trump and his kind like Icahn are only about greed - they don’t care how many lives on earth they ruin - but there will be a reckoning soon.
Greed of a few is what is killing the average American. Greed in corporations, Greed in healthcare and a Greed based economy! Mutualist Capitalism is the way to go. A healthy economy based on profit sharing and prosperity for all. Sadly, these greed driven profiteers have their champion in tfg. TFG should never been allowed into power as his business interests were always going to be in conflict with his ability to do his job as president. He is the Greedmaster in Chief! Driven not by helping all prosper but just a few and himself to prosper! Thanks Robert for an enlightening article shedding light on yet another greedy capitalist!
Bravo! This is a story that needs telling in detail. Working people have lost most of their pensions as a result of the Private Equity firms. That's the tip of the iceberg. Donald Trump uses misdirection on this point. He blames illegal aliens for what the Private Equity firms have done to our economy. While people are worried about border security, Private Equity firms buy their local hospitals. They either close the hospital or raise prices, depending on which makes more money for the General Partners. Meanwhile, they lay off nurses. Patient care deteriorates, but all Fox News reports is border security. Donald Trump claims that his tariffs will cause people to build factories in the United States. Who are these mystery people? Not the Private Equity firms, they have either destroyed U.S. jobs or exported them. This is like when Donald Trump claimed that Covid would go away, and instead it killed 1.2 million Americans. Changing the subject, one way the so-called mainstream media is helping Donald Trump is giving air time to Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton is a great American, but people hate her. The more they see her, the more they vote against Kamala Harris.
Professor Reich, I had never heard of Carl Icahan until I read this article. What an absolutely evil man! I wholeheartedly agree that for Americans' sake we must return to Stakeholder Capitalism. These 'corporate raiders' are as much to blame for the problems middle Americans are facing as much as anything else. I have preached and preached to my conservative friends about Stakeholder Capitalism vs Shareholder Capitalism and can finally see some light shining through. I intend to discuss this Carl Icahan as another reason we need to return to Stakeholder Capitalism if we want our country to improve. Vote blue, America, up and down the ballot!
Icahn is the Gordon Gecko of American capitalism. Just how many yachts can you waterski behind? Americas working class probably doesn’t even know how this works or is too busy or lazy to investigate unfortunately. The system is and has always been rigged against them. It’s high time we elect a governmental leadership that recognizes the American workers contributions to the success of our biggest corporations and stops their bigoted views of non executive personnel as a number on their balance sheets.