What's Eroding The Middle Class?
Submitted by Charles Hugh-Smith via OfTwoMinds blog,
This erosion of a self-employed, independent middle class was an important pre-condition for the collapse of Rome and the French Revolution.
I have devoted many blog posts to the erosion of the middle class, for the specific reason that when the middle class--the layers of the economy between the Power Elites and landless laborers/state dependents--erodes away, the nation/empire is destabilized and descends into crisis.
A society without a functioning middle layer of economic and social activity is not stable, though repression can mask this for a time.
As historian Peter Turchin explained in his book War and Peace and War: The Rise and Fall of Empires, societies that lose the cohesion needed for concerted, collective action collapse, either by failing to meet an external threat or from internal conflicts.
Economies constructed of a supremely wealthy elite, a thin layer of independent artisans and small farmers, and a great mass of laborers with no assets has no shared sense of identity or purpose; those at the bottom have little in common with those at the top, and the thin middle that is scraping by has little affinity with either the elite above or the poverty-stricken below.
This erosion of a self-employed, independent middle class was an important pre-condition for the collapse of Rome and the French Revolution.
As I have outlined in some detail, the middle class in the U.S. is eroding: the lifestyle that was widely accessible to a broad swath of households in the 1960s is now only available to the top 10% below the wealthy (the top 5%). This includes not just possessions like a home or vehicle but productive assets that can be handed down to the next generation.
As it stands now, many households that consider themselves "middle class" have few if any productive assets, and even fewer will have any assets to pass on to the next generation as their retirement and other expenses may well consume much of whatever assets they currently own.
There are five primary drivers of this erosion in my view:
1. The shifting of pension and healthcare costs/risks from the state and employers to employees
2. The decline of scarcity value to labor in general and specifically in college degrees that were once the guaranteed ticket to middle class security
3. The inexorable rise in big-ticket costs: higher education, healthcare and housing. Even as wages stagnate, these costs continue rising. claiming an ever-larger share of household incomes, leaving less to save/invest.
4. The transition from an economy with stable returns to a financialized boom-and-bust economy that wipes out middle class wealth in the busts but doe not rebuild it in the booms.
5. The regulatory and administrative barriers to self-employment in a globalized economy.
There is zero evidence that any of these drivers is going to reverse, for the reason that they are reflections of deep forces that cannot be reversed: demographics, the exhaustion of financialization, the 3rd Industrial Revolution (i.e. the digital/automation revolution) and the loss of scarcity value in the foundations of the middle class: labor and financial capital.
(11 votes)
»
- Login or register to post comments
- Printer-friendly version
- Send to friend
- advertisements -
Trade deals, trade deals, trade deals.
fascism, fascism, fascism!
Education inflation: A BS degree is equivalent to a 1970 HS degree, a MD is the new BS degree, bla, bla,
Ok, I guess I'll be the first to say it... Financial Jewery
Robots are the new middle class.
"What's Eroding The Middle Class?"
iPhones
The jews are killing the middle class. When they destroy the western economies whilst loading up on immigrants, the middle class must be non-existent for a big bang in society. At this point, all Jews worldwide will head to the holy land leaving the west with no middle class to rebuild anything. The west will be turned into a constantly warring Middle East type situation while the me will be a jew nirvana where there will be zero Muslims as the ones they leave alive will be forced on Europe and u.s.
Each Jew will have 2000 goyim slaves.
I have to wonder if its intentional to destroy this site by having the Nazis show up en force here to destroy whatever credibilty it might have.
The "jew" theme is getting so old. There is no way to block the "jew" boy theme and no way to reach out and punch you in the face. Its an overt attempt at eliminating viewership.
I know your denial of reality is intentional, truth hurts doesn't it. Less than 3% of the US population, yet nepotistically and crony networked into the financial industry figures below. Same goes for NFL, NBA owners and corporate mass media. But keep your head in the sand.
"Hamilton specifically notes the shocking wealth concentrated in such hands, referring to Forbes Magazine’s recent ranking of the richest hedge fund managers in the United States by estimated personal net worth: “Twenty-four of the 32 names on the list (75%) are Jewish. Of the 10 wealthiest, 8 (80%) are Jewish.” He further adds that “Despite their social and economic power and privilege the names of hedge fund managers are virtually unknown even to educated and informed people, never mind the general public.”
In good part, we can thank Hollywood for this."
http://www.theoccidentalobserver.net/2016/01/how-they-continue-to-lie-to...
I agree with 1033eruth.
I have no problem at all with calling out the bad behavior of various groups where it is deserved. None. And I have no special love for Judaism. But what is it with the Jew-bashing on this website? I live in the real world, and I DON'T GET IT.
I usually don't say anything because the commentors who do the bashing aren't worth the attention (just like some of the bozos who post eco-babble).
It also makes ZH look like a refuge for idiots and misfits.
PS, CHS: great post... well chosen topic, well framed and relevant.
If you lived in the real world, you would notice that the guys in charge of all of these programs and policies share on thing in common. They are all Jewish.
FFS it was even a Jew that started Anonymous and the whole #BLM nonsense.
"I have no problem at all with calling out the bad behavior of various groups where it is deserved."
Eureka! We share something in common, because personally, I have no problem at all with calling out the 'heads up their asses' behavior of various groups where it's deserved.
We should get together and have a drink someday Wi hi hi hilll lbur!
Yet here you are saying that it's not the Jews and their inclusive behavior that is behind the destruction of the middle-class, even though it benefits them almost exclusively.
I don't drink with Communists, or Jews.
If you agree with the pathetic fuck above, shouldn't you be leaving because my views are intolerable...
To Nids & Kessel, complaining because:
"...the guys in charge of all of these programs and policies share on thing in common. They are all Jewish."
I say the following: I come from a background that is just about as WASP'y as you could find anywhere and I can tell you that the roots of the ideas behind those "programs and policies" come from where I came from... not from Jewery.
I always hated those ideas and never connected them to Jews because I can think outside my current environment and connect dots from great distances. They grow mostly out of Christianity I am sorry to say, and I had to listen to that shit all through my childhood. Most of the people who carry water for this contemporary insanity are not Jewish.
Where you see a cabal of Jews, I see a really, really big group of individuals - mostly not Jewish - and what has floated to the top and become concentrated there is ability. Jews are are there because they have more drive and, in my experience, are simply smarter that the rest.
Guys, your problem is not with evil Jews, your problem lies with the fact that they're frequently better at being evil. They're frequently better at whatever they do - good or evil.
BTW: to the dimwits who downvote me on this one: ANSWER ME! ...(if you can)
even Billy Graham had his problems with the tribe.........good enough for me...
''Nixon then launched into an anti-Semitic tirade, saying, “Newsweek is totally, it’s all run by Jews and dominated by them in their editorial pages. The New York Times, The Washington Post, totally Jewish, too.”
To this Graham replied, “The stranglehold has got to be broken, or the country’s going to go down the drain.”
Nixon is heard asking, “You believe that?”
“Yes, sir,” Graham said, to which Nixon replied, “Oh boy, so do I. I can’t ever say that, but I believe it.”
Responded Graham, “No, but if you get elected a second time, then we might be able to do something.”''
https://www.au.org/church-state/march-2011-church-state/people-events/ev...
The WASPs got their methods and ideas from the Jews. Not the other way around.
They are better at nepotism, lying, and corruption.
That isn't something to be proud of on any level. It speaks volumes that a WASP would be so open about such degenerate behavior. Lack of shame or fear is something that will get you killed, because while you fuckers think you are great at everything, some of the populace has perfected their expertise in particular fields. Those fields are something that they accel at, and pissing them off isn't a good idea, because those fields are very, what's the word, oh yeah "combative".
So while you cocky arrogant shits were off fucking everyone over in the middle-class with your elitist mentality some of those people have been watching and writing your names down.
You want my advice? Shut your trap and start listening. You're just an amateur here and in the real world where some of those people have perfected their craft to a level you will never understand. You might live longer that way. When push comes to shove, you might want to get out of the way or face the full wrath of everyone you arrogant fucks screwed over.
Soooo, NIDSTYLES... YOU ARE A TYLER! Interesting.
Only a "Tyler" could insert their comment out of sequence on this website to break up the logic of my replies. To anyone who wonders about this look at the timestamps for proof. And, this is not the first time.
You obviously are no respecter of rules or of merit. That is Sad.
In reply to your "The WASPs got their methods..." comment
That's a real load and I wouldn't even attempt to address it all in one shot, but taking one thing at a time: I have heard this "nepotism" thing before, and I can't conceive, based on what I've seen, of what that means. I just don't get it.
You must have some situation or circumstance in mind when you and others bring this up. Enlighten me. Where are the circumstances that create "nepotism" in a way that makes any difference? Can you give an example?
PS: you got some intense hatred there fella... trust me, that's not good for your health! No amount vitamins will reverse the damage you'll do to yourself if you don't chill out.
I despise the media too... but you can't criticise the ones who've risen to the top because they're Jewish. They're there because they have more skill at processing conceptual material than the others.
This viewpoint of Nixon and Graham is simply a blow struck against superior intelligence. Not against Jews or Jewery.
VastDom.........I knew you'd come back!!
Nepotism is not intelligence.
Okay NIDSTYLES, you or some one of the Tylers have been de-sequencing my comments, so I'm gonna put a dup reply here, below your reply... let's see if you leave it there. :)
In reply to your "The WASPs got their methods..." comment (and the one on nepotism)
That's a real load and I wouldn't even attempt to address it all in one shot, but taking one thing at a time: I have heard this "nepotism" thing before, and I can't conceive, based on what I've seen, of what that means. I just don't get it.
You must have some situation or circumstance in mind when you and others bring this up. Enlighten me. Where are the circumstances that create "nepotism" in a way that makes any difference? Can you give an example?
PS: you got some intense hatred there fella... trust me, that's not good for your health! No amount vitamins will reverse the damage you'll do to yourself if you don't chill out.
dupe
I may be able to explain why so many bash the Jewish, even when it appears they are not specifically to blame for an incident.
It is because anyone with any ability to look at what has been going on in the world since 1947, knows that the issue with Israel/Palestine is the root cause of many if not most of our problems right now.
Therefore, they are the enemy. Anything...ANYTHING that spreads the warning to the non-awakened yet, is OK. They can be bashed for anything and everything. They are the evil.
BTW-I don't hate Jewish people. But it seems to me they have infiltrated our government. And our government, through the use of weapons enables, Israel to be despicable bullies.
Funny, one rarely hear complaints when economies, stock markets, and housing are booming.
But watch out, if you are one of those who complains, many times you will be made fun of or verbally attacked if you believe there is a bubble, it's unsustainable, etc. and don't go along with the herd.
Not sure why this was missed but the #1 reason why middle class is dying is flat out taxes (Obummercare is a tax, bailouts are a tax, education - even making student loans non-dischargable is a tax). The larger and more oppressive government gets the smaller that middle class will become until something snaps like it did 300 years ago.
Look at Germany, Netherlands, Luxembourg, etc. They have a functioning middle class despite taxes. Now they're being invaded by the camel fuckers who are destroying them - different story though.
As long as you have access to well paying jobs, workweeks under 60 hours, not having to live in constant fear of getting canned and no longer being able to take care of your family, as long as minimum wage nannies are not the ones bestowing values on our kids and as long as we don't compete against the slaves in Bangladesh we have a chance, even if the take burden is 15% higher.
THe shit that's going wrong - I'm talking about 100% of our opportunity being erased, not the government stealing an extra 10 or 15%
Those countries were collapsing economically, and their middle class is virtually nonexistent.
You must not pay property taxes in Illinois.
You are at zerojew.
Jews are bad
Islam is good.
Obama is just a helpless puppet.
"Anti Semitism" is nothing new. Jews have been subject to deportations, discrimination and even death for well over a thousand years. You need to look into why Jews have gotten such attention in the past.
No one asks why Hitler was the most popular German leader in all of their history? Why did that nation (and at least 50 before it) put the finger on the Jew? I have never heard of any other group getting such attention.
It's just Jews being Jews. I am glad to see people here who get it. I am also glad folks post it here as well because the Jews are responsible for legislation in most nations that makes it illegal to "put the finger on them" for the things they have done.
So you don't think that Jews have too much power in the West nor is their religion nothing more than thinly veiled supremism? Good for you, go back to your TV and leave the men (and women) who can think for themselves.
If one post could destroy this site it would have been gone a long time ago.
Since this is the anonymous internet, not a town square. Hard core haters can make statements like that and have no consequences other than down votes.
If the poster chooses to step out into public, things might be different.
How many restrooms, janitors, break rooms, parking spots, defibulators, first aid kits, safety briefings, safety equipment, OSHA, training classes, sick days, pensions, bonuses, raises, union complaints, union leaders, managers, vacation/family/sick days, junky bulletin boards, do robots require?
Chuck, the average inflation adjusted wage for an American worker peaked in the fall of 1971, just months after Nixon decoupled the dollar from gold. It's been downhill ever since.
Obamacare Taxes ...Taxes and more Taxes ... and on and on.... to support the ever-expanding FSA and gubmint bureaucracy.
That plus we're more and more in a global economy. When people agree to work for pennies a day, labor jobs go to them, bringing down everyone else who might want those jobs.
NAFTA, GATT, WTO etc.
Corporate Welfare, failure to enforce the Sherman Act.
So called "Free Trade" free for who?
Big corps, China, India
gutted the middle class
The consumer insisted on this by refusing to pay a lot more for made in the USA, not refusing to buy cheap labor products.
In communism, there is no middle class. Do the math.
And-We-Have-A-Winner!
the disease is debt-based fiat...brought to you by the TRIBE..............EVERYTHING else is just a symptom
It's intellectually lazy to blame everything on the "Jew" factor. That's a scapegoat that has been overplayed. Give it a rest.
I'll be the first to say that the current economic/political/social structure is incompatible with a middle-class, but it isn't the fault of Jews (in general) or whatever other bunko-scapegoat you have in mind.
It's a systemic breakdown due to greed, greed, greed and more greed and the entrenching in government of those who desire power and wealth above all else, Jew and gentile alike.
The more corrupt a government the smaller the middle class.
But what is the government IS the middle class?
"It depends on what the meaning of is is."
When people work, save and invest in debt money, counterparty risk, generational Ponzi scheme assets... No wonder they are broke.
What is worse... They have no real tangible wealth... No real friends... And outside of this debt based consumerism... Not real skills.
Trade deals are the trap door for the middle class. We are competing against people who have never heard of health insurance, have no rights, no quality of life, i.e. we're competing against the 1880s version of ourselves. How is it not 100% clear that this is fucking the middle class? How can you downvote firstdivision's comment if your IQ is above 80?
Don't forget the $9.00/day wage scale. You can of course crack your monthly nut on that number right?
Doomed to repeat.... Pitchforks and torches!