Leave it to The Daily Show to once again produce the most cogent argument for regulation in the face of the Wall St. CEO onslaught. In this video Elizabeth Warren, chairman of the Congressional Oversight Committee, argues forcefully that we are on the verge of losing the middle class in this country. As I have stated elsewhere on this blog, I contend that this effort has been purposeful - that the elites in this country have always benefited from the diminution of the middle class. This worldview has been extended throughout the rest of the world via the "global economy" meme that serves the same purpose elsewhere.
Notes From The Rust Belt arises out of the gathering storm clouds facing the United States in 2009 and beyond. The image of the rust belt conjures up the movement of American jobs from our shores, leaving the rusting ruins of our former manufacturing strength. It was this strength that allowed this country to emerge as a superpower out of World War 2, and served as the engine for the emergence of the Middle Class along with other forces, such as a strong labor movement and the G.I. Bill of Rights. We now find ourselves watching this Middle Class atrophying before our eyes, and simultaneously seem to have no control over this rapid fall in our mutually held democracy and strength.
This blog subscribes to the notion that the demise of the Middle Class is not accidental, but rather serves the interest of powerful forces, forces that are decidedly nondemocratic. Notes From The Rust Belt is dedicated to a lively discussion of these issues, along with future efforts to point toward the necessary changes to restore our country to the democratic ideals upon which it was founded.
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