Unfortunately, Democrats seem always to be a few steps behind Republican messaging, so people have already heard what they think they need to hear by the time Republicans have pumped out their message. Democrats, then are seen as whining or making things up. Even though what Republicans have to say is usually not accurate or at least, not well thought out, it doesn't matter. The people have their set of explanations - that Democrats and Biden have caused whatever pain they are feeling. Thinking about it more deeply rarely happens for a variety of reasons, laziness being a prominent one. Also, economics is more complex than a 3-word slogan. I like Dr. Reich's suggestions for what we need to do. The question is will we start doing it and soon enough to beat the Republican super-messaging machine. R.Sheets
President Joe Biden accused Exxon Mobil Corp. and other oil companies of exploiting high gasoline prices after a report showed inflation soaring to a new 40-year record.
“We’re going to make sure everyone knows Exxon’s profits. Exxon made more money than God last year,” Biden said during an event at the port of Los Angeles.
That's just a "baby step"... Biden needs to take giant, meaningful strides to make these corporations pay for what they're doing to the rest of us. He needs to do what Professor Reich has indicated.
I like Biden, but I feel that he is too old for another term. He could really do the party a great service by accomplishing what he said he would, and go after the large corporations that are raking in record profits, then redirecting this wealth where it is needed most. By intentionally becoming a one term president, he could enhance his legacy, help those who are most in need, and set his party up for a successful 2024 campaign. The republicans are doing nothing to help the economy, and with his popularity in free fall, what does he have to lose? Bipartisan efforts are not working; it’s time for executive orders and FDR governance!
How he can do this when in order to pass any decent legislation he needs the congress? and the congress is 52% republican, if we count Joe Mansion and the idiotic Sinema.? you can blame him, but I'll blame the voters, the lousy democrat's voters who fail to get a real majority in the house and in the congress
The inability or refusal to vote among registered or leaning democrats most certainly remains a major factor in Washington's intransigence. It's always been maddening to me, hearing folks slough off their responsibility in setting the larger (better) future agenda.
I think--drum roll--our major unvoiced enemy is the American Myth, promulgated hugely by movies, which essentially is: We'll always prevail; God said so ..
I am just getting ready to read Mary Trump's second book, The Reckoning: Our Nation's Trauma and Finding a Way to Heal, in which she argues that America has PTSD.
I have a strong background in Culture, Psychology and History from a very interdisciplinary BA, and then an MA in History. So I am quite certain this is possible and I will be surprised if I do not agree with her.
Could she? I would be surprised if not. Would she? You would have to ask her.
She looks and sounds nothing like her uncle. And any attention he paid to her, would tend to help her rather than him, although I am sure most of his base supporters would accept Uncle Donald's characterization of her as a scheming troublemaker.
Uncle Donald. Now that has a nice ring to it, where have I heard that ... Oh, yeah, right, with Uncle Scrooge and the Beagle Boys.
The Beagle Boys wore sweatshirts with inmate numbers that were re-arrangements of the same number. I made one, but mine was blue and said 'R A I S I N', from the 70s cereal ad ..
You are correct. We all need to try harder, not just Biden.
A few people cannot beat the tRumpists no matter how motivated they are. It is going to take a coordinated team effort, and we need all the help we can get. We even need Liz Cheney's help even if some of us do not want to admit that..
Unfortunately, not enough...for example how do you explain that in Florida with only 32% of republicans registered to vote, we still have a very strong republican's control over the government, laws and economics, even our own "little Ceasar" playing the role of the orangutan in chief! Democrats are lousy, lazy and very demandant but not people with balls. Too soft, to wordily but not fighting hard. for what they called their principles. Logic makes no sense here.
The April 2022 statistics from the Florida Division of Elections shows those register to vote as follow: Republicans have 5,142,002, Democrats have 5,007,590, Minor Partys have 256,220, and No Party Affiliation have 3,872,352. When I compare these numbers to those for 2021, the Republican number increased by 18,203 the Democrats decrease by 73,107 and the No Party Affiliation increased by 42,980. You can see that the differences are not astronomical. Let me add some facts that you may not be aware of, since the Republicans took over in Florida, they raided the Sadowski Fund to balance their budget. The Sadowski Fund was established by prior Democratic Administrations for the sole purpose of providing affordable housing they foresaw the need for affordable housing; guess what, NOW we have a large shortage of affordable housing and this year they, the Republicans administration, agreed not to use it for anything other than housing. Too little too late. We are having an increase in homelessness; this is one reason of many other that we now have a shortage of teachers in public schools as well as in our universities. The main industry Florida has is tourism. An industry that does not pay well. There is not much to say about this state's infrastructure. The working class in this state struggles. Those retirees with a good pension, a good saving, and investments are the only residents living the life of Riley. The Democrats are not as lousy as you say, I am not impressed with Governor DeSantis. I am more impressed with the governor of Ohio, the state I lived all my youth, am now 76 years old. By the way that governor there is a Republican with a heart.
Rodrigo Vilches ; Broward county is a vote disappearing zone. Roger Stone has his dirty tricks along with other operatives. Corruption is rampant there. The 2000 election was definitely stolen with help from that state's Governor and Secretary of state. they want to do that again and copy the process in other Rethug states.
Thank you. Dr. Reich for this very informative essay. I really don't understand why the Biden Administration is not willing to A) condemn these corporations for their obscene profits, and B) pursue anti-trust legislation that already exists to reign in some of the profiteering. As for a windfall profits tax I know it has to originate in the House of Representatives, which is doable so long as we control the House. But the Senate will continue to prevent any legislation that will help ordinary citizens at the expense of their wealthy donors. Biden needs to say this and say it often.
People are smart. They watch "career politicians" that have made millions in office, call out executives that make millions running a corporation. Almost like "the pot calling the kettle black". Meaning the criticisms of a person is aiming at someone else could equally well apply to themselves. Going after corporations makes democrats look jealous of others wealth. This strategy will backfire. That happened with Elisabeth Warren when she went after Musk. She looked foolish.
Daniel. Thank you for great article. Before the federal government goes after big business they need to get their house in order first. They are spending our tax money like drunken sailors. The federal government is so big with so many departments it is presently stuck in mud.
Specifically to Manchin and Sinema. Why has Biden not stripped them of committee assignments? I guess we can't afford to 'lose' them? there oughtta be a law!
Fifty years ago Donella Meadows and a team called "the Club of Rome", really out of MIT, wrote a book called Limits to Growth. In it the claim, based on what we now think of as crude modelling programs, that humans were growing beyond the resource limits of the planet. William R. Catton called the "Overshoot" in his book by that name. William Rees and others, who do ecological footprint studies, basically confirm and expand on these subjects. We are in overshoot, which means we need to degrow. Our economy is based on a false belief in continuous growth. Medically that is known as cancer. Perhaps recession is simply a forced recognition of that need to degrow. We can do it less painfully if there is a much better and fairer distribution of resources (graduated income taxes as in the Eisenhower era anyone?), but overall we must use a lot less energy and fewer resources if we are going to adequately address the climate crisis. I would love to hear your comments on this.
I agree we need fair taxation. I am retired now but the last 18 years of employment I was making between $60,000/yr and $120,000 plus an additional $35,000 from two pensions and my payroll tax (including Federal. State, Social Security and FICA, but not property tax or sales tax)) was 42% of that gross income. I was 70 when I started in private industry and 87 at retirement. I was a widow so had very few deductions. During this same time period 2003 to 2021 many multi-millionaires and billionaires paid ZERO taxes because of all the tax breaks and loop holes they received starting in 1973. Ronald Reagan and the trumpster were among those who paid no taxes.
Wayne Teel: "Beyond the resources of the planet." Thus space exploration.
There is no doubt that conservation is less riskier and has a higher potential yield than "the random walk in the universe" economic theory that underlies libertarian and now Republican policy.
But that doesn't mean we need to cut off the nose to spite the face.
I think we have begun to access unlimited mostly untapped energy from alternative sources that reduce the carbon imprint but can produce growth.
Same with new materials. Nanotechnology. Plastic batteries.
Thank you Daniel. I do approve of the scientific exploration of Space, but considering the damage Homo sapiens have done to Planet Earth, our first and foremost duty is to mitigate and hopefully reverse global warning. Then enact regulations for the entire planet to reverse out of control greed on the part of a few of us (corporations, and super rich) That means working with the United Nations and/or other world encompassing Councils. Soon, (as Now)
Wow Fay! I must ask you to slow down, just a bit, after your 103rd birthday! 😄
You are spot on with the horrible inequity of the tax system for the ultra wealthy. The republicans keep helping the “poor darlings”. Their voters hurt themselves but are too embroiled in hatred of those they need to feel superior to.
Our own history shows us that taxing ultra wealth and corporate wealth is a winning situation for both individuals and the country.
The fact is, we’re under attack. Putin has been instrumental in this. Oh but Trumplicans look up to the man & the other dictators of the world.
Wayne, this is one of the most incisive comments I have seen in this forum. The economy is inextricably intertwined with the carrying capacity of the planet, which has its limitations. You don't have to be a physicist to understand the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which tells us that in the physical world with every energy exchange there is a slight loss (entropy). This is in direct contradistinction to the human artifice of financial expansion that presides over our development and consumption of physical resources. We don't need any reshuffling of a flawed system by shifting around the debt load. We need a real world economy which measures the world in its own terms and develops and distributes its resources accordingly. Fair or unfair, before the miracle of credit buying, differentials in income were assumed to guard against overshoot by limiting distribution. All that has changed now with buy now, pay later. The earth is the one that's paying now for the rampant consumption made possible by credit. See Captain Jacques Cousteau's address to the World Conference on Population and Development in Cairo in 1994. And see the REAL Technocracy Inc.'s design for an economy based on real things, not the fantasy world of finance. Any other course will only lead to disaster.
Thanks, Paula. I've been working on this since I joined Technocracy Inc. thirty-five years ago. Its study course introduced me to the concept that the monetary economy is totally out of sync with physical reality. No wonder most people have no clue to what is really going on. They're too busy scrambling to keep the wolf of interminable debt from blowing down their houses of straw.
Thank you for educating me (and so many others), providing the changing context to today’s economy and politics and keeping me informed so I can make the decisions I need as we move forward as a republic and as a family, and everything in between. Your efforts are appreciated more than you will ever know.
This is what just drives my crazy about Democrats: Their absolute insistence that they lose elections.
"So you're saying it would be good for the economy, deny the other party the main thing they're attacking me for, and help me win the next election? Yeah, that's not how I roll. I'll pass, thanks."
I agree with your political analysis. I have been frustrated that Biden has failed to fully use his bully pulpit to communicate these messages to the public. He'll say something a few times here and there, which, in the mass of information with which the public is bombarded, doesn't get through. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have been telling it like it is, but they are dismissed by the news media and even some Democrats as "far left extremists." Democrats should do what Republicans do: craft a message that resonates, and then have all of them repeat it, in tweets, on the Sunday talk shows, in impromptu interviews in the Capitol, in local news media, wherever they can, over and over.
Biden’s a disappointment plain and simple. As you pointed out there are several things that he should be doing. This is a political authoritarian inspired recession to blame democrats. A recession showing up just in time for midterms is no coincidence. Americans need to look beyond tough times as to who is responsible and why. Fascism plain and simple
I don’t call Biden a full disappointment yet, he can’t get votes past the senate due to idiots Sinema & Manchin. This never happens to republicans. They threaten their own and frankly, Biden needs to threaten, legally bribe (as they all do) or do anything and everything to get Republicans out of our way. The fact that a criminal seditionist is out and about holding rallies make me want to scream. Who else would terrorize the country then be allowed to galavant around to spread more deadly lies! ? But Biden can’t hold back one once.
It’s this kind of searching for excuses that is a hallmark of the Democratic Party and those that support them.
The Sinema/Manchin abhorrence may make getting things through Congress difficult but there is NOTHING stopping Biden (and other prominent Democrats) from speaking about what needs to be done. And perhaps, if they made a message that they just pounded and pushed then maybe there might be enough pressure brought to bear to actually get something through Congress.
The “There’s an obstacle in my way so clearly I shouldn’t talk about how to improve things. Sure, it might cause the obstacle to budge, but it’s easier to complain about it being there.” excuse is pathetic.
David Gergen who I respect had some interesting comments about Biden the fact that he is probably too old he is not a teacher he does not communicate well with the American people
The issue I’ve been struggling with is identifying the principal cause(s) of the current worldwide inflation. I do not understand how to separate the effects of supply-demand, ongoing infrastructure constraints, and price setting or “price gouging” by large corporations.
In the report it says that "Another reason is to look where this inflation started: the rapid run-up of prices in the goods sector (particularly durable goods). The pandemic directly shifted demand out of services and into goods (people quit their gym memberships and bought Pelotons, for example) just as it also caused a collapse of supply chains in durable goods (with rolling port shutdowns around the world)." Not that I disagree but that's an awful lot of very expensive gym memberships, and obviously it's only an example. But don't you think there should also be some discussion of the impact of the money the government provided to tide many of over through the pandemic? Many of those service sector employees not working during the pandemic were being helped by the Paycheck Protection Program and other programs.
Thank you so much, Bob! I recall the price of crude oil actually going negative a couple of years ago, so my struggle is HOW inflationary pricing happens in the marketplace and WHO is responsible for it.
I'm not Bob but greed is part of human nature. IMHO it started with oil prices and sellers added on unconscionable profits, using oil as an increased cost of doing business as a pretext.
The Saudis control OPEC, the "market maker" for the price of oil internationally by fixing output. In essence they fix the price of oil. The Saudis own the largest oil refineries in the US and control a number of US oil producers.
On April 12, 2020, under pressure from Trump, the world’s biggest oil-producing nations outside the United States agreed to the largest production cut ever negotiated.
OPEC, Russia and other allied producers slashed production by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 10% of global output. Half that volume came from cuts of 2.5 million bpd each by Saudi Arabia and Russia, whose budgets depend on high oil-and-gas revenues.
This was done because the dramatic reduction in demand caused by the pandemic reduced gasoline prices to the point where it was hurting American oil company profits.
To protect those oil companies, Trump essentially extorted the Saudis to cut production. Less supply = higher prices.
In the meantime American oil companies have achieved record, multi-billion profits. While no president is responsible for the price of gasoline at the pump, largely a function of supply, demand and corporate greed, Trump went to enormous length to cut supply.
Once demand was restored, we were stuck with Trump’s short-sightedness.
Sellers continue to raise prices and reap excess profits.
In Italy there is already a tax on the additional profits of the oil companies, and in Germany this is currently being discussed as to whether it would be legally enforceable. The question is, of course, whether this would make sense. In Germany, there is currently a so-called tank rebate; taxes are waived by 30 cents when filling up, which has only resulted in prices remaining the same for the consumer. Legally, it is rather difficult, because during the Corono crisis, biotech companies would also have had to be taxed more heavily...Therefore, in Germany, for example, they are thinking about limiting the market monopoly of the oil companies.
I have never understood how the economy works, and am not much better enlightened even after your excellent attempt to explain it. What I do understand is if this election is fought on the state of the economy, the Republicans will probably win the election, and that is the worst possible outcome this year! There are so many forces at play here, and the Republicans are America's WORST ENEMY. Social programs will suffer, minorities will lose their rights to vote, the abortion question will be answered in a way that HURTS EVERYONE, wealth inequity will not only continue to increase but will speed up the rate of inequity growth, and any gun control gains that are made in the next few months may very well be lost and turned around even worse. These consequences and more cannot be allowed to happen! SOCIETY IS BEING DESTROYED FROM THE TOP DOWN, and it is not just a trickle, but a tidal wave of destruction.
Democrats must act to overturn the economic panic attacks being sold to Americans by the Republicans, and emphasize the social ills that will result from a Republucan victory in either the House or the Senate. Instead Biden must be given given WORKING MAJORITIES IN BOTH CHAMBERS in order to stop the cancer of Repuglycanism. If American voters cannot see that, you might as well kiss your asses goodbye. MAGAtism will return in full force!
If we overwhelm the vote, it is far, far more difficult to cheat! They simply do not have the numbers of voters. WE DO! It has to be a landslide. We can do it, but Democrats need to be vocal about our expectations but stop doing things like calling Biden Sleepy Joe etc, the republicans mantras. We cannot help the seditionist, child-murder-supporting republiCon party AT ALL. And we must focus on Jan 6 committee facts! Ad nauseam!
Exactly, and I think we need to re-elect Biden because he is the only Democrat in sight with the experience to handle this, and he has the sense not to proceed too fast.
Plus, if he dies in office, we will get our first woman President, and her name will not be Clinton.
You do have the numbers. If you can get the voters to the polls. This is the important part. Fighting the election on the economy is what the GOP want. Refuse to fight it on that front, other than to say with real majorities the Dems can do something about it. Fight the election on what the loss of minority rights and abortion rights will do to America. Fight the election on needing 60 Senators to make changes to gun control laws. Fight on the positives, not on perceived negatives. A VOTE FOR THE LEFT IS A VOTE FOR THE RIGHT AMERICA!
Need Keynesian economics. BBB. Restore the $300/child/month tax credit.
I support a WPA, works progress administration.
The Eisenhower recession wiped out the middle class in most of the rust belt. Shopkeepers, store owners couldn't get loans to run their businesses. Passenger train service was reduced to a trickle, eliminated in W. Pa, Ohio a couple of years later. The biggest NYSE companies were Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central, and soon neither existed. Space program/Vietnam War spending lifted the national economy, but much of the rust belt remained in decline. Whereas petit bourgeois are usually the movers of growth, even flowers do not bloom on the graves of the lost businesses. Not mentioned in economics textbooks.
I see your point. These days, we may have to recall what we know from Keynesian economics and augment that knowledge with Kate Raworth's doughnut economics to address threats from climate change, biodiversity loss, poverty and racism, environmental degradation, water issues, etc....
Unfortunately, Democrats seem always to be a few steps behind Republican messaging, so people have already heard what they think they need to hear by the time Republicans have pumped out their message. Democrats, then are seen as whining or making things up. Even though what Republicans have to say is usually not accurate or at least, not well thought out, it doesn't matter. The people have their set of explanations - that Democrats and Biden have caused whatever pain they are feeling. Thinking about it more deeply rarely happens for a variety of reasons, laziness being a prominent one. Also, economics is more complex than a 3-word slogan. I like Dr. Reich's suggestions for what we need to do. The question is will we start doing it and soon enough to beat the Republican super-messaging machine. R.Sheets
President Joe Biden accused Exxon Mobil Corp. and other oil companies of exploiting high gasoline prices after a report showed inflation soaring to a new 40-year record.
“We’re going to make sure everyone knows Exxon’s profits. Exxon made more money than God last year,” Biden said during an event at the port of Los Angeles.
That's just a "baby step"... Biden needs to take giant, meaningful strides to make these corporations pay for what they're doing to the rest of us. He needs to do what Professor Reich has indicated.
I like Biden, but I feel that he is too old for another term. He could really do the party a great service by accomplishing what he said he would, and go after the large corporations that are raking in record profits, then redirecting this wealth where it is needed most. By intentionally becoming a one term president, he could enhance his legacy, help those who are most in need, and set his party up for a successful 2024 campaign. The republicans are doing nothing to help the economy, and with his popularity in free fall, what does he have to lose? Bipartisan efforts are not working; it’s time for executive orders and FDR governance!
I am almost 73, so I am prejudiced, at least a little, but I do not think Biden is too old.
Biden is often compared to FDR, who was a chain-smoker and drank a pitcher of Martinis every afternoon.
And yet FDR survived over 3 terms of what may have been the most stressful Presidency ever.
If Biden runs again, he will have my vote. I can't say that much about any of his potential successors.
How he can do this when in order to pass any decent legislation he needs the congress? and the congress is 52% republican, if we count Joe Mansion and the idiotic Sinema.? you can blame him, but I'll blame the voters, the lousy democrat's voters who fail to get a real majority in the house and in the congress
The inability or refusal to vote among registered or leaning democrats most certainly remains a major factor in Washington's intransigence. It's always been maddening to me, hearing folks slough off their responsibility in setting the larger (better) future agenda.
I think--drum roll--our major unvoiced enemy is the American Myth, promulgated hugely by movies, which essentially is: We'll always prevail; God said so ..
I am just getting ready to read Mary Trump's second book, The Reckoning: Our Nation's Trauma and Finding a Way to Heal, in which she argues that America has PTSD.
I have a strong background in Culture, Psychology and History from a very interdisciplinary BA, and then an MA in History. So I am quite certain this is possible and I will be surprised if I do not agree with her.
Sodden thought: Could she run for an office? Then again, the rabid backlash or name=character confusion ..
Could she? I would be surprised if not. Would she? You would have to ask her.
She looks and sounds nothing like her uncle. And any attention he paid to her, would tend to help her rather than him, although I am sure most of his base supporters would accept Uncle Donald's characterization of her as a scheming troublemaker.
Uncle Donald. Now that has a nice ring to it, where have I heard that ... Oh, yeah, right, with Uncle Scrooge and the Beagle Boys.
The Beagle Boys wore sweatshirts with inmate numbers that were re-arrangements of the same number. I made one, but mine was blue and said 'R A I S I N', from the 70s cereal ad ..
You are correct. We all need to try harder, not just Biden.
A few people cannot beat the tRumpists no matter how motivated they are. It is going to take a coordinated team effort, and we need all the help we can get. We even need Liz Cheney's help even if some of us do not want to admit that..
Gregory S ; We had millions more votes in the last election than the Rethugs and won the election. What are your talking about? makes no sense.
What? You haven't noticed that the tRumpists and their collaborators are trying harder?
Maybe you should read more:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jun/14/roger-stone-michael-flynn-distorting-christianity-reawaken-america
The tRumps are changing rules in their states to do as they please no matter how the Democrats vote.
I can agree with that. And I think this article is another good example of that:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jun/14/trump-big-lie-support-republican-primary-winners-gop
So what we don't need now is any suggestion that we did it last time, so we can certainly do it again, when there is nothing certain about it, yet.
I am afraid it is you who has stopped making much sense.
Huh? without the 'lousy Democrat's voters' we would have had the orange one again. the two democrat traitors are the 'lousy Dems".
Unfortunately, not enough...for example how do you explain that in Florida with only 32% of republicans registered to vote, we still have a very strong republican's control over the government, laws and economics, even our own "little Ceasar" playing the role of the orangutan in chief! Democrats are lousy, lazy and very demandant but not people with balls. Too soft, to wordily but not fighting hard. for what they called their principles. Logic makes no sense here.
The April 2022 statistics from the Florida Division of Elections shows those register to vote as follow: Republicans have 5,142,002, Democrats have 5,007,590, Minor Partys have 256,220, and No Party Affiliation have 3,872,352. When I compare these numbers to those for 2021, the Republican number increased by 18,203 the Democrats decrease by 73,107 and the No Party Affiliation increased by 42,980. You can see that the differences are not astronomical. Let me add some facts that you may not be aware of, since the Republicans took over in Florida, they raided the Sadowski Fund to balance their budget. The Sadowski Fund was established by prior Democratic Administrations for the sole purpose of providing affordable housing they foresaw the need for affordable housing; guess what, NOW we have a large shortage of affordable housing and this year they, the Republicans administration, agreed not to use it for anything other than housing. Too little too late. We are having an increase in homelessness; this is one reason of many other that we now have a shortage of teachers in public schools as well as in our universities. The main industry Florida has is tourism. An industry that does not pay well. There is not much to say about this state's infrastructure. The working class in this state struggles. Those retirees with a good pension, a good saving, and investments are the only residents living the life of Riley. The Democrats are not as lousy as you say, I am not impressed with Governor DeSantis. I am more impressed with the governor of Ohio, the state I lived all my youth, am now 76 years old. By the way that governor there is a Republican with a heart.
Rodrigo Vilches ; Broward county is a vote disappearing zone. Roger Stone has his dirty tricks along with other operatives. Corruption is rampant there. The 2000 election was definitely stolen with help from that state's Governor and Secretary of state. they want to do that again and copy the process in other Rethug states.
All's needed, then, is a credible winnable candidate ..
Thank you. Dr. Reich for this very informative essay. I really don't understand why the Biden Administration is not willing to A) condemn these corporations for their obscene profits, and B) pursue anti-trust legislation that already exists to reign in some of the profiteering. As for a windfall profits tax I know it has to originate in the House of Representatives, which is doable so long as we control the House. But the Senate will continue to prevent any legislation that will help ordinary citizens at the expense of their wealthy donors. Biden needs to say this and say it often.
People are smart. They watch "career politicians" that have made millions in office, call out executives that make millions running a corporation. Almost like "the pot calling the kettle black". Meaning the criticisms of a person is aiming at someone else could equally well apply to themselves. Going after corporations makes democrats look jealous of others wealth. This strategy will backfire. That happened with Elisabeth Warren when she went after Musk. She looked foolish.
Says a Republican.
Teddy Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, many others earned their spurs as "trust busters." FDR perfected it.
https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/message-congress-curbing-monopolies
Daniel. Thank you for great article. Before the federal government goes after big business they need to get their house in order first. They are spending our tax money like drunken sailors. The federal government is so big with so many departments it is presently stuck in mud.
"People are smart." Not in my world they aren't.
In my world, and my bubble I work and live around some amazing smart people. I feel bad for you if you do not.
No federal authority to limit price gouging without legislation.
However many states have statutes that apply.
Specifically to Manchin and Sinema. Why has Biden not stripped them of committee assignments? I guess we can't afford to 'lose' them? there oughtta be a law!
Fifty years ago Donella Meadows and a team called "the Club of Rome", really out of MIT, wrote a book called Limits to Growth. In it the claim, based on what we now think of as crude modelling programs, that humans were growing beyond the resource limits of the planet. William R. Catton called the "Overshoot" in his book by that name. William Rees and others, who do ecological footprint studies, basically confirm and expand on these subjects. We are in overshoot, which means we need to degrow. Our economy is based on a false belief in continuous growth. Medically that is known as cancer. Perhaps recession is simply a forced recognition of that need to degrow. We can do it less painfully if there is a much better and fairer distribution of resources (graduated income taxes as in the Eisenhower era anyone?), but overall we must use a lot less energy and fewer resources if we are going to adequately address the climate crisis. I would love to hear your comments on this.
I agree we need fair taxation. I am retired now but the last 18 years of employment I was making between $60,000/yr and $120,000 plus an additional $35,000 from two pensions and my payroll tax (including Federal. State, Social Security and FICA, but not property tax or sales tax)) was 42% of that gross income. I was 70 when I started in private industry and 87 at retirement. I was a widow so had very few deductions. During this same time period 2003 to 2021 many multi-millionaires and billionaires paid ZERO taxes because of all the tax breaks and loop holes they received starting in 1973. Ronald Reagan and the trumpster were among those who paid no taxes.
Wayne Teel: "Beyond the resources of the planet." Thus space exploration.
There is no doubt that conservation is less riskier and has a higher potential yield than "the random walk in the universe" economic theory that underlies libertarian and now Republican policy.
But that doesn't mean we need to cut off the nose to spite the face.
I think we have begun to access unlimited mostly untapped energy from alternative sources that reduce the carbon imprint but can produce growth.
Same with new materials. Nanotechnology. Plastic batteries.
https://www.asme.org/topics-resources/content/9-material-discoveries-that-could-transform-manufacturing
Thank you for reminding us that science is still at work! Pretty amazing discoveries.
Thank you Daniel. I do approve of the scientific exploration of Space, but considering the damage Homo sapiens have done to Planet Earth, our first and foremost duty is to mitigate and hopefully reverse global warning. Then enact regulations for the entire planet to reverse out of control greed on the part of a few of us (corporations, and super rich) That means working with the United Nations and/or other world encompassing Councils. Soon, (as Now)
Wow Fay! I must ask you to slow down, just a bit, after your 103rd birthday! 😄
You are spot on with the horrible inequity of the tax system for the ultra wealthy. The republicans keep helping the “poor darlings”. Their voters hurt themselves but are too embroiled in hatred of those they need to feel superior to.
Our own history shows us that taxing ultra wealth and corporate wealth is a winning situation for both individuals and the country.
The fact is, we’re under attack. Putin has been instrumental in this. Oh but Trumplicans look up to the man & the other dictators of the world.
Biden’s doing a lot but he must do everything!
Wayne, this is one of the most incisive comments I have seen in this forum. The economy is inextricably intertwined with the carrying capacity of the planet, which has its limitations. You don't have to be a physicist to understand the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which tells us that in the physical world with every energy exchange there is a slight loss (entropy). This is in direct contradistinction to the human artifice of financial expansion that presides over our development and consumption of physical resources. We don't need any reshuffling of a flawed system by shifting around the debt load. We need a real world economy which measures the world in its own terms and develops and distributes its resources accordingly. Fair or unfair, before the miracle of credit buying, differentials in income were assumed to guard against overshoot by limiting distribution. All that has changed now with buy now, pay later. The earth is the one that's paying now for the rampant consumption made possible by credit. See Captain Jacques Cousteau's address to the World Conference on Population and Development in Cairo in 1994. And see the REAL Technocracy Inc.'s design for an economy based on real things, not the fantasy world of finance. Any other course will only lead to disaster.
You nailed it!
Thanks, Paula. I've been working on this since I joined Technocracy Inc. thirty-five years ago. Its study course introduced me to the concept that the monetary economy is totally out of sync with physical reality. No wonder most people have no clue to what is really going on. They're too busy scrambling to keep the wolf of interminable debt from blowing down their houses of straw.
Thank you for educating me (and so many others), providing the changing context to today’s economy and politics and keeping me informed so I can make the decisions I need as we move forward as a republic and as a family, and everything in between. Your efforts are appreciated more than you will ever know.
It all goes back to not nominating and electing Bernie.
Bernie keeps on fighting the good fight. Admirable. Interesting article in today’s Guardian.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jun/13/bernie-sanders-lindsey-graham-republicans-fox-news-debate?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
Can we NOT in the USA find someone under the age of 70 to run for the presidency?
I like Cory Brooker
yes, and that was the fault of the Dem party who gave those super delegates to Clinton.
This is what just drives my crazy about Democrats: Their absolute insistence that they lose elections.
"So you're saying it would be good for the economy, deny the other party the main thing they're attacking me for, and help me win the next election? Yeah, that's not how I roll. I'll pass, thanks."
AAARRRGGHHHH!!!!!!
Thank you for this economics lesson.
I agree with your political analysis. I have been frustrated that Biden has failed to fully use his bully pulpit to communicate these messages to the public. He'll say something a few times here and there, which, in the mass of information with which the public is bombarded, doesn't get through. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have been telling it like it is, but they are dismissed by the news media and even some Democrats as "far left extremists." Democrats should do what Republicans do: craft a message that resonates, and then have all of them repeat it, in tweets, on the Sunday talk shows, in impromptu interviews in the Capitol, in local news media, wherever they can, over and over.
Biden’s a disappointment plain and simple. As you pointed out there are several things that he should be doing. This is a political authoritarian inspired recession to blame democrats. A recession showing up just in time for midterms is no coincidence. Americans need to look beyond tough times as to who is responsible and why. Fascism plain and simple
I don’t call Biden a full disappointment yet, he can’t get votes past the senate due to idiots Sinema & Manchin. This never happens to republicans. They threaten their own and frankly, Biden needs to threaten, legally bribe (as they all do) or do anything and everything to get Republicans out of our way. The fact that a criminal seditionist is out and about holding rallies make me want to scream. Who else would terrorize the country then be allowed to galavant around to spread more deadly lies! ? But Biden can’t hold back one once.
It’s this kind of searching for excuses that is a hallmark of the Democratic Party and those that support them.
The Sinema/Manchin abhorrence may make getting things through Congress difficult but there is NOTHING stopping Biden (and other prominent Democrats) from speaking about what needs to be done. And perhaps, if they made a message that they just pounded and pushed then maybe there might be enough pressure brought to bear to actually get something through Congress.
The “There’s an obstacle in my way so clearly I shouldn’t talk about how to improve things. Sure, it might cause the obstacle to budge, but it’s easier to complain about it being there.” excuse is pathetic.
I think the states can take the lead and go after price fixing and price gouging. Stand up California!
https://www.ncsl.org/research/financial-services-and-commerce/price-gouging-state-statutes.aspx
David Gergen who I respect had some interesting comments about Biden the fact that he is probably too old he is not a teacher he does not communicate well with the American people
Absolutely. So far basically nothing from Biden
Bob,
The issue I’ve been struggling with is identifying the principal cause(s) of the current worldwide inflation. I do not understand how to separate the effects of supply-demand, ongoing infrastructure constraints, and price setting or “price gouging” by large corporations.
Help please!!
Tom J, Birmingham, AL, USA
Tom, you might find this report helpful: https://www.epi.org/blog/corporate-profits-have-contributed-disproportionately-to-inflation-how-should-policymakers-respond/#:~:text=In%20short%2C%20the%20rise%20in,margins%20and%20supply%2Dchain%20bottlenecks.
In the report it says that "Another reason is to look where this inflation started: the rapid run-up of prices in the goods sector (particularly durable goods). The pandemic directly shifted demand out of services and into goods (people quit their gym memberships and bought Pelotons, for example) just as it also caused a collapse of supply chains in durable goods (with rolling port shutdowns around the world)." Not that I disagree but that's an awful lot of very expensive gym memberships, and obviously it's only an example. But don't you think there should also be some discussion of the impact of the money the government provided to tide many of over through the pandemic? Many of those service sector employees not working during the pandemic were being helped by the Paycheck Protection Program and other programs.
Thank you so much, Bob! I recall the price of crude oil actually going negative a couple of years ago, so my struggle is HOW inflationary pricing happens in the marketplace and WHO is responsible for it.
I'm not Bob but greed is part of human nature. IMHO it started with oil prices and sellers added on unconscionable profits, using oil as an increased cost of doing business as a pretext.
The Saudis control OPEC, the "market maker" for the price of oil internationally by fixing output. In essence they fix the price of oil. The Saudis own the largest oil refineries in the US and control a number of US oil producers.
On April 12, 2020, under pressure from Trump, the world’s biggest oil-producing nations outside the United States agreed to the largest production cut ever negotiated.
OPEC, Russia and other allied producers slashed production by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 10% of global output. Half that volume came from cuts of 2.5 million bpd each by Saudi Arabia and Russia, whose budgets depend on high oil-and-gas revenues.
This was done because the dramatic reduction in demand caused by the pandemic reduced gasoline prices to the point where it was hurting American oil company profits.
To protect those oil companies, Trump essentially extorted the Saudis to cut production. Less supply = higher prices.
In the meantime American oil companies have achieved record, multi-billion profits. While no president is responsible for the price of gasoline at the pump, largely a function of supply, demand and corporate greed, Trump went to enormous length to cut supply.
Once demand was restored, we were stuck with Trump’s short-sightedness.
Sellers continue to raise prices and reap excess profits.
Hope you have sent this to Biden and his economic team professor Reich.
I am concerned about the applicability of current economic theory to current issues.
In Italy there is already a tax on the additional profits of the oil companies, and in Germany this is currently being discussed as to whether it would be legally enforceable. The question is, of course, whether this would make sense. In Germany, there is currently a so-called tank rebate; taxes are waived by 30 cents when filling up, which has only resulted in prices remaining the same for the consumer. Legally, it is rather difficult, because during the Corono crisis, biotech companies would also have had to be taxed more heavily...Therefore, in Germany, for example, they are thinking about limiting the market monopoly of the oil companies.
Need senate.
Curious about the impact on the economy of the mass spending on political campaigns.
I have never understood how the economy works, and am not much better enlightened even after your excellent attempt to explain it. What I do understand is if this election is fought on the state of the economy, the Republicans will probably win the election, and that is the worst possible outcome this year! There are so many forces at play here, and the Republicans are America's WORST ENEMY. Social programs will suffer, minorities will lose their rights to vote, the abortion question will be answered in a way that HURTS EVERYONE, wealth inequity will not only continue to increase but will speed up the rate of inequity growth, and any gun control gains that are made in the next few months may very well be lost and turned around even worse. These consequences and more cannot be allowed to happen! SOCIETY IS BEING DESTROYED FROM THE TOP DOWN, and it is not just a trickle, but a tidal wave of destruction.
Democrats must act to overturn the economic panic attacks being sold to Americans by the Republicans, and emphasize the social ills that will result from a Republucan victory in either the House or the Senate. Instead Biden must be given given WORKING MAJORITIES IN BOTH CHAMBERS in order to stop the cancer of Repuglycanism. If American voters cannot see that, you might as well kiss your asses goodbye. MAGAtism will return in full force!
If we overwhelm the vote, it is far, far more difficult to cheat! They simply do not have the numbers of voters. WE DO! It has to be a landslide. We can do it, but Democrats need to be vocal about our expectations but stop doing things like calling Biden Sleepy Joe etc, the republicans mantras. We cannot help the seditionist, child-murder-supporting republiCon party AT ALL. And we must focus on Jan 6 committee facts! Ad nauseam!
Exactly, and I think we need to re-elect Biden because he is the only Democrat in sight with the experience to handle this, and he has the sense not to proceed too fast.
Plus, if he dies in office, we will get our first woman President, and her name will not be Clinton.
rawgod
Writes rawgod's rantingsjust now
You do have the numbers. If you can get the voters to the polls. This is the important part. Fighting the election on the economy is what the GOP want. Refuse to fight it on that front, other than to say with real majorities the Dems can do something about it. Fight the election on what the loss of minority rights and abortion rights will do to America. Fight the election on needing 60 Senators to make changes to gun control laws. Fight on the positives, not on perceived negatives. A VOTE FOR THE LEFT IS A VOTE FOR THE RIGHT AMERICA!
Beyond politics, there are some things people can do to make the economy more resilient and reduce inflationary pressures:
Reduce unnecessary consumption and car use (there are many ways to do this)
Buy food from local (organic, regenerative) smaller farms (farmers markets)
Cook food at home (it doesn't take recipes and special equipment, it's not that hard)
Acquire new skills in renewable energy, circular economy, etc. (Coursera.org and edx.org)
Other ideas?
Need Keynesian economics. BBB. Restore the $300/child/month tax credit.
I support a WPA, works progress administration.
The Eisenhower recession wiped out the middle class in most of the rust belt. Shopkeepers, store owners couldn't get loans to run their businesses. Passenger train service was reduced to a trickle, eliminated in W. Pa, Ohio a couple of years later. The biggest NYSE companies were Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central, and soon neither existed. Space program/Vietnam War spending lifted the national economy, but much of the rust belt remained in decline. Whereas petit bourgeois are usually the movers of growth, even flowers do not bloom on the graves of the lost businesses. Not mentioned in economics textbooks.
Aggravated by Reaganomics.
I see your point. These days, we may have to recall what we know from Keynesian economics and augment that knowledge with Kate Raworth's doughnut economics to address threats from climate change, biodiversity loss, poverty and racism, environmental degradation, water issues, etc....
https://www.kateraworth.com/doughnut/