This wasn’t always the case. A half century ago, it could be said that “what’s good for General Motors is good for America.” Back then, industry titans relied on American workers to produce their products and American consumers to buy them. They cared about the health of the nation, and were thus willing to fund things like public schools and infrastructure. They paid decent wages so that their workers could afford to buy their products.
Today’s plutocrats outsource manufacturing jobs to low-wage countries. They send their kids to private schools, live in gated communities, fly on private jets, and drink bottled water. They still care about profits and return on investment capital, but today, there is little connection between the health of the nation and the health of Wall Street. Indeed, last week, while a record 3.3 million Americans lost their jobs and filed for unemployment benefits, the stock market posted some of its largest gains since 1933, as Wall Street anticipated the $4 trillion slush fund that our government will set up to bail out corporate America, even as it continues laying off its workers. Continue reading.