Industrial
Revolution or Class Revolution
PART 1 OF THREE
date: January 4th, 2018
“This
Country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever
they shall grow weary of this existing government, they can exercise their
constitutional right of amending it, or exercise their revoluntary right to
overthrow it” Abraham Lincoln
I believe that America is going to
be embroiled in a push back to the Fourth Industrial Revolution or it will be
involved in a Class Revolution in the not too distant future. As jobs begin to
disappear on the Industrial side, Income Disparity and Equality will be the
driving force on the Class side.
The
Response
On Wednesday, December 27, 2017,
Frida Ghitis, a well known and accomplished producer and writer published an
article on CNN “10 Questions that could keep you up at night in 2018.” We may
get to that article but at the moment I am more interested in a response that
was posted to the article.
The poster is not identified so we
will have to trust that it is a legitimate person and not a robot (pun
intended).
miscreantsall miscreantsall is the poster
Drumpf is just getting started and
it is very clear that the architecture of our Democratic Republic and our
Constitution are not strong enough to STOP this perfect storm of all the worst
elements of human governments (socialism, communism, fascism, capitalism,
monarchism, etc.) to merge and destroy the United States of America (as we know
it).
About 25% of eligible American
Voters are enabling and keeping this megalomaniac in office.
The majority of American voters
allowed this because of apathy, laziness, indifference, false confidence,
presumptions, irresponsibility and outside forces (voter suppression)
preventing or making it extremely difficult to vote.
Perhaps America deserves exactly
what it is getting. What Drumpf got away with in New York before his campaign
is the stuff of LEGENDS. He now has been given the reins to make that LEGEND
reach out into eternity and the Cosmos.
The obvious damage (deregulation,
deconstruction, etc) is known and many pundits believe, can be reversed. There
are MULTITUDES of damage that is being done under the radar and under-reported
for NOT reported at all.
Now that they have their tax bill
and their campaign contributors appeased, the Congressional Republicans will
focus on retaining control of Congress and find a reason to remove Trump,
before the American voters remove them for supporting him.
Trump will do what he can to start a
war with whomever he can maneuver into the position of his foe of the moment.
The only question is will they remove
him fast enough to not have him involve us in yet another Republican war
without end, or will the inevitable recession, due to the tax cust hit before
they can.”
My
Response
Whew! That is a lot of stuff in a
few paragraphs. But this person whom I don’t know has written eloquently of the
things I have tried to put pen to paper since this election.
A person that I correspond with
knows that this is my thinking.
Actually, my thinking is even dire.
I have believed and said so loudly and often that Trump is channeling Adolf
Hitler.
I am not going to go down that side
road at this time. Nor am I going to delve into the subjects that this person
broaches that I am ignorant of, what Trump “got away with in New York before
the campaign is the stuff of LEGENDS.”
I know of a few instances of things
that received mention but not the attention that they deserved, money
laundering conviction, convictions and indictments regarding a hotel etc.
Those, while noteworthy (as it is
they have not resonated with voters and why not is beyond me) again are not in
my line of sight.
I ended my last post with this image
and it seems appropriate to start this new post with the same image. Machine Learning — A Visit with Vinjay
Is
America’s Economic Might Waning?
The article in the Atlantic that
accompanies this image first states all of the reasons why people think that
America’s economic might is waning. It even admits that some facets of mounting
economic inequality are ‘truly alarming’.
That mounting economic pressure is
the focus of this series.
One of the unfortunate realities of
using the article is that it was published in April of 2014. I have looked for
followup articles without success. So there may be a small amount of comparing
apples to oranges.
I do believe that the main points of
the article are sound and no doubt still valid. I think that the fall of the
American growth engine starts in 2017, the first year of Trump. I will state my
reasoning before moving on. In that way, you will have reference points along
the way.
Another point to make at this
juncture. I used the Michnglo painting in the Sistine Chapel in Rome
depicting God giving power to Adam through touch. I purposely have not shown whether
Adam is Male or Female.
Why
2017 is the Beginning of the Fall of the American Growth Engine
Four
Reasons
I believe Trump made his biggest
blunder by canceling TPP, Trans-Pacific Partnership. This started the
erosion of America’s authority in the world.
From this point forward all other
nations of the world will view America’s ventures such as trade agreements,
with a great deal of skepticism.
Why would America abdicate the power
and authority it had achieved over the 70 years since the end of WWII? In the
guise of ‘Make America Great Again’ that which has made America great has been
jettisoned over the gunwales of the ship of state.
Illogical and disconcerting.
He abdicated what good will the US
had in the region and allowed China to move in and start claiming that
authority. Which it quickly did.
One event that resulted from Trump’s
stupid play is that the nations that had been involved in the agreement
announced that they are going to continue the partnership without the presence
of the United States.
Prestige lost, Power lost, Strength
lost, Jobs lost.
I believe Trump made his next
biggest blunder (the second) by canceling US involvement in the Paris
Accord.
Not only are these actual
cancellations important but the message they send to the other nations of the
world is that Trump is hurling the US back to a time prior to WWII.
In the seventy years since the end
of that war, the US has been at the forefront of the stability, the
innovations, the organizations, the sense of partnership and accomplishment
that filled the nations of the world.
Now that standing, that leadership
is gone and the fragmentations of what is to follow are sometimes not going to
be pretty.
I believe Trump’s third biggest
blunder was in mocking NATO.
While he didn’t disengage from that
organization as he threatened, he caused that league of nations, that bulwark
standing against the advance of Russia growing militarism and expansionism to
crumble.
I think that it would have been
better to actually dissolve America’s continued participation rather than have
America be the odd man out because every action taken forward will always
include a shadow of doubt regarding the question ‘Is America really in this or
not’?
I believe that the citizens of other
countries are now mocking Trump and shake their heads at the citizens of this
country for allowing this maverick or madman to continue with his hideous
schemes.
Of course, the Republican Party
which has shrunk to Trump’s level of gross banality because they are panting so
hard to accomplish their next often stated goals: KILL ACA, KILL
MEDICAID, KILL MEDICARE, KILL SOCIAL SECURITY.
Except for the few, those not
well-intentioned few that still support him, Americans will be paying a huge
price for letting the madman continue his rampage on destroying America
that existed on January 19, 2017.
I believe Trump’s fourth biggest
blunder is moving recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
America had no reason to make that
decision other than to throw whatever progress had been in making peace or at
least forestalling active hostilities into the trash heap of history.
No good will come of this decision
as the citizens of the Muslim world will now openly accost Americans at every
turn and no doubt plan open terrorist actions on American soil.
I am not discounting all or any of
his other errors in missteps, mistakes and misspeaks. But again there are so
many I will give the fun of organizing them into a coherent summary to someone
else.
The overarching blunder of
Trump has been the saber rattling of a misshapen, misguided provocateur intent
on defacing the humanity of the planet.
I do not have the knowledge or skill
to evaluate those actions because the follow-on will be so horrific as to be
inexplicable.
Trump’s
Strength or Lack Thereof
I believe his biggest internal
blunder within the confines of the America state, in addition to thinking the
America people are going to tolerate his tax fraud.
His payment of the $1.5 trillion
bounty to the Republican donors as a payoff for continuing their support of
the now morally bankrupt Republican party by taking that payment from everyone
less fortunate in wealth.
Now that is pure speculation on my part
since I don’t have a crystal ball and it is too early to predict the average
American will coalesce into a formidable action group to confront these
despicable transactions.
I believe that majority of Trump’s
supporters still do support him. I believe this because every once in awhile I
get a word or phrase calling my sanity or some other bodily into question from
one of these people.
So now you know where I stand and
what I believe to be true and what predictions will come to be confirmed. I
agree with almost every point that the first writer, Frida Ghitis, stated.
I have laid out my major grievances
regarding Trump’s major decisions. Trump’s minor error and infractions, I
cannot keep up with.
My biggest and most wholehearted
fear is that which Trump is going to do or not do next.
No, it is not war with North Korea.
No, it is not war with Russia or China.
No, it is a war against the very
people he was entrusted to protect.
This
Administration has No Intention of Providing Support
It is my belief that he and his
administration are not willing to step up and be a leader.
Indeed that may not even be
cognizant of the need for a leader.
A leader to step forward and plans
the actions necessary to make sure that every US citizen is going to have a
fair chance of surviving the Fourth Industrial Revolution with a sane mind, a
family held together, a job at fulfilling the financial needs and emotional
needs of individuals.
I am very confident of this
statement by watching his performance with the miners in the West Virginia.
His boasts, his promises, his
glad-handing of these citizens with no intention of ever following thru is the
most egregious affront to a moral authority that rises above all of the other
lies he has spewed out of his sullied mouth.
I believe that Trump and his minions
are going to just let things happen as they may.
If that is his plan is then there
really is no point in trying to weather the storm.
Yes, some people will come thru the
onslaught of the revolution unscathed.
Yes, some people will even survive
the coming onslaught with good fortune.
This revolution is not going to
touch everyone the same or even parts of the country the same.
What I am saying is that because
there is not going to be cohesive, even-handed planning on how to prepare citizens
for the coming onslaught that picture of the majority of people will look very
much like the picture of the miners of West Virginia do now.
For those interested in reviewing my
thoughts on their plight follow this link Review the course of
ignoring the plight of the miners of West Virginia
What happened in West Virginia is
that at the very beginning of that sad tale, capitalism reared its ugliest head
and set the course that West Virginia would follow for more than 100 years.
The
Republican Party has been Eviscerated by Greed
Republicans are now wallowing in
their new found power of changing the tax code to benefit no one but their
donors.
They are wallowing in the stench of
betraying their constituents and their country.
That is an easy epithet to hurl at
them because once they are not acting in the best interests of the country that
they have sworn to protect they have abdicated any moral authority that they
had.
They have ignored the history of
what followed Reagan’s gift to the wealthy and ignored the history of what
followed Bush’s gift to the wealthy in 2001 and 2003.
Several of the first acts of the
Trump administration were to kill all of the rules established by the Obama
administration to give greater oversight to the government to control
the greed that was born due to the race to the bottom which was a major factor
that caused The Great Recession of 2008.
So we are now looking at the same
conditions that caused economic disasters in the 1980’s and the 2000s: little
government oversight, great amounts of wealth stripped from the lower
classes and given to the already wealthy, and the greed that is being run on
the front pages everyday regarding the ‘new’ digital currencies.
We have seen this, been there and
done that over and over again.
The Republicans keep stoking the
same fires for the same reason — GREED.
Do they think that the results will
be different?
But a key to this seeming dilemma is
the financial recovery of the Obama years in reality ‘forgave’ the debt of the
wealthy people that had suffered.
The debt that wasn’t forgiven and
had to be continued to be paid where the less than filthy rich. One of the
people decrying this unfair situation was none other than Donald J. Trump. Hmm…
What is different now than it was
even in the 2000’s is the economy has started to undergo fundamental shifts in
how it functions. That is why it is called a ‘Revolution.’
Artificial intelligence is a wonder
to bend to the will of humans and it can bring wonderful benefits.
However wonderful it may be no one
is study and planning for the effects it will have on the middle class and
working class people.
Projections for disruption run up to
47% job loss due to the growth of machine learning, deep learning, and neural
network trends.
No one, as far as I know, is charged
with strategic planning to avoid the West Virginia syndrome. Who is going to be
hardest hit? What programs can be implemented to lessen the consequences?
Education, Retraining, Job Apprenticeships.
Can
We Afford to Leave People Behind
What parts of the country as at most
risk for ending up like West Virginia? What can be done to ameliorate the
consequences?
Many parts of the country could
survive quite well since some major hits have already been weathered.
The ten million job losses in the
last 10 years due to improved technology and implementing procedures to follow
as more and more of the revolution takes hold.
Even the five million job losses in
manufacturing have been mostly absorbed by increases in productivity.
Do not get complacent. Just because
statistical ‘recovery’ is shown on paper does not mean that the individuals that
suffered the job losses have recovered.
I have said from the outset that
this country needs to weather this storm as a whole.
The divisiveness that has raised its
ugly head is due to Trump’s words and actions.
The disunity that laid dormant for
almost fifty years came roaring to life when a black man became president.
The disunity that has been sown has
torn our country into disarray.
The gender inequality that
has led so many powerful and seemingly respectable men to insult and plunder
the pride and self-worth of so many women that has been in the headlines in
recent months is not resolved only brought into the light of day.
Glaring
Inequalities
The pay inequality that
almost became an issue during the runup to the Republicans corrupt tax plan
will turn into a major issue if they continue on their stated course to demolish
Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security.
NOT
DENIAL
One simple, easy and self-evident
solution that had it been enacted would have solved much of the problem.
“If the US had been more inclusive
(in the 1970’s), GDP growth would have averaged 3.1% instead of 2.9% — and each
American would be $5,000 wealthier on average. (I am sure that the wealthy that just received their big
gift would stick up their noses at it but to most Americans, it would be nice
to have had).
(In a comparison with Norway) Both
countries had female workforce participation rates of 45% in the 1970’s. But
Norway did much more to bring women into traditionally male roles, raising its
participation to 76%; the US is only at 67%.
If the US had the same share of
women in the workforce as Norway, it would be $1.6 trillion wealthier,
according to a report by Standard and Poors.
NOT
DENIAL
According to M.S. Eccles, who was
appointed Chairman of the Federal Reserve in testimony before Congress as it
was trying to sort out solutions to the Great Depression has some very concrete
opinions on cause and effect.
1.) The concentration of wealth and
the attempt to maintain that wealth by going into debt to maintain standards.
2.) He flatly stated that a
fundamental change must be made in our social system
I am sure Republicans are ecstatic
to hear that. But he stated, “the operation of our money world has failed to
be our servant and instead is our tyrant and master.”
Oh Oh.
What were his solutions?
First, unemployment relief, second bank deposit guarantee
program, third, agriculture subsidies, fourth, federally
guaranteed farm mortgage program.
Duck Republicans!
He called for a more equitable
distribution of wealth, a high income and inheritance tax, unemployment
insurance and old age pension laws.
He was for a balanced budget
but it had to include a balanced economy.
Too much concentration of wealth?
Did you know that there are 400
people and then the rest of us?
400 people own as much wealth as the
nation’s entire African-American population plus more than 1/3 of the Latino
population COMBINED!
The wealthiest 186 members of the Forbes
400 own as much wealth as the ENTIRE Latino population.
The combined worth of the Forbes 400
is $2.34 TRILLION and is more than the bottom 61 percent of the country
combined 194 million people.
400 people compared to 194 million??
The median American family has a net
worth of $81,000. The Forbes 400 own more wealth than 36 million of these
‘typical’ American Families.
TWENTY PEOPLE now own as much wealth as HALF OF ALL AMERICANS. 20!
And this is prior to the latest and greatest tax break. Did you know that Trump
made hundreds of millions of dollars on the tax break?
There are 3 — three people that own
as much wealth as the bottom half of the nation’s population.
Warren Buffett, Jeff Bezos and the
runt of the bunch, Bill Gates. These men own as much wealth as 160 million of
the rest of us.
Thank you for stopping.
This is the first in a three-part
series:
The Politics of Denial: Industrial
Revolution or Class Revolution?
Craig.
“We
can either have a democracy in this country or we can have great wealth
concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have it both ways” Justice
Brandeis, Associate Supreme Court Justice
