tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4408415205100913549.post6121919869527191836..comments2023-05-07T11:44:14.915-04:00Comments on the disgruntled democrat: Will the Collapse of the Middle Class Bring About Democracy in America?Brian Gibbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15361320319319431428noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4408415205100913549.post-91815491462017320482013-09-11T10:06:53.346-04:002013-09-11T10:06:53.346-04:00My question is whether this could even begin to ta...My question is whether this could even begin to take place without the catstrophic collapse of the existing order? As well,hasn't the rise of suburbia, the commidification of dissent, and the pervasive presence of the infotainment sector -- Facebook and Twitter are the opiate of the masses -- neutered the vast majority of Americans, so much so that they would prefer to watch the revolution on HD TV?Brian Gibbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15361320319319431428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4408415205100913549.post-53573378512132792482013-09-10T11:59:08.367-04:002013-09-10T11:59:08.367-04:00You might get your hands on a copy of Gar Alperovi...You might get your hands on a copy of Gar Alperovitz' "What Then Must We Do, Straight Talk About the Next American Revolution."<br /><br />He analyzes how North America had the middle class triumph of the postwar decades as founded on the Progressive movement of the early 20th century, the upheaval of the Great Depression and WWII, and the emergence out of the wartime labour shortages of a powerful union movement that empowered the broad-based middle class that spanned from manual labour to the professions.<br /><br />Reagan/Thatcher/Mulroney set into motion the wheels that dismembered organized labour and squeezed the middle class - downward - creating a chasm of inequality and the unearned transfer of wealth and political power to what Bush called, "my base - the Haves and the Have Mores."<br /><br />Alperovitz contends the next revolution will come through workers taking ownership of the means of production, an experiment that began in Ohio and is spreading to other states. It's a fascinating concept.The Mound of Soundhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09023839743772372922noreply@blogger.com