Krugman: Worried About Oligarchy? You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet

[adirondacker]

"Even those of you who talk about the 1%, you don't really get what's going on. You're living in the past.'
- Jon Queally, staff writer

In an interview with journalist Bill Moyers set to air Friday, Nobel laureate and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman celebrates both the insights and warnings of French economist Thomas Piketty whose new ground-breaking book, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, argues that modern capitalism has put the world "on the road not just to a highly unequal society, but to a society of an oligarchy—a society of inherited wealth."

The conclusions that Piketty puts forth in the book, Krugman tells Moyers, are revelatory because they show that even people who are now employing the rhetoric of the "1% versus the 99%" do not fully appreciate the disaster that global wealth inequality is causing.

Says Krugman:

Actually, a lot of what we know about inequality actually comes from him, because he's been an invisible presence behind a lot. So when you talk about the 1 percent, you're actually to a larger extent reflecting his prior work. But what he's really done now is he said, "Even those of you who talk about the 1 percent, you don't really get what's going on. You're living in the past. You're living in the '80s. You think that Gordon Gekko is the future."

And Gordon Gekko is a bad guy, he's a predator. But he's a self-made predator. And right now, what we're really talking about is we're talking about Gordon Gekko's son or daughter. We're talking about inherited wealth playing an ever-growing role. So he's telling us that we are on the road not just to a highly unequal society, but to a society of an oligarchy. A society of inherited wealth, “patrimonial capitalism.” And he does it with an enormous amount of documentation and it's a revelation. I mean, even for someone like me, it's a revelation."

<snip>
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2014/04/18-8

MUST SEE Video of Moyers interview with Krugman...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024839929#post1

[phantom power]

1. kick

[TBF]

2. K&R nt

[Auggie]

3. I agree

SCOTUS has certainly made it easier for the wealthy to promote and control their own political agenda.

There's nobody to stop them.

[zentrum]

4. Went to a free public

Last edited Sat Apr 19, 2014, 04:32 PM - Edit history (1)

.... presentation and panel discussion, featuring Piketty and others. He's made a life work out of studying the economies of 30 nations, collecting data on income distribution since the 1800s.

On every chart he presented, America is the worst of the developed nations. We have the most income disparity with the top 2% owning more, proportionately, than any other developed economy. Why? He says there are two reasons: the outsize pay of our top executives, and our tax structure, which while progressive, allows the rich to hoard too much of their money.

The wealth income ration is getting worse and worse and he says will eventually be irreversible except by revolution a la France in 1789.

The cure? He recommends a new, global, world wide progressive tax that redistributes income globally. Didn't say how to pull that off though.

The panel of distinguished economists positively referenced Krugman a fair number of times. Wish Obama would.

[adirondacker]

6. Thanks for the insightful and interesting reply. That is awesome that you were in attendance.

Perhaps we can only rely on other foreign nations to reign in their multinationals (and ours). I do hope something is done in advance to a full on revolution.

[Maynar]

10. ^^This

[Enthusiast]

27. "Wish Obama would."

That is simply not going to happen. By now it should be clear where the President stands ideologically, no matter what he says with words.

[albino65]

5. The French also had a solution for this problem in 1789 n/t

[merrily]

7. Inspired by the solution of the colonists on this continent in 1776.

[Curmudgeoness]

8. "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss."

That really is the problem with the type of revolution that the French had, besides creating economic disaster for years while things got reorganized. Although I am worried that this may be the only option in the not-too-distant future, I certainly hope that it can be avoided by other means.

[yurbud]

26. the solution is broader based democracy but the problem is sustaining interest in self-government

instead of slipping into a lynch mob mentality like the French Revolution did or looking for a strong man as the Russian Revolution devolved into (and the French did too for that matter).

[Curmudgeoness]

29. I don't think it can work.

True democracy requires a much smaller population. Try living in a commune and you will see something closer to a true democracy, but there are still "leaders", and those leaders will still hold sway with most of the other members. Like it or not, most people are followers and are not comfortable making their own decisions.

In a large country like the USA, I don't see any way for a democracy to work. So it all comes down to finding the best leaders and representatives, and holding their feet to the fire....but probably not literally.

[zentrum]

12. Oops, thanks.

I mean 1789 and fixed the date on my post.

[albino65]

14. I did not mean to step on your post

We must have been posting at the same time.

[zentrum]

25. Didn't step. It was helpful! n/t

[elzenmahn]

9. I think the right way to term it is "Corporate Feudalism"

>>Hedge Funds and Private Equity firms buying up foreclosed houses by the thousands and becoming landlords;
>>The Banks and The Bailouts with nobody going to Jail (don't get me started about that!);
>>Multinational corporations owing no national loyalty to anyone, anywhere;
>>Those same multinationals moving their headquarters overseas (like to Europe) to avail themselves of the now lower tax rates;
>>The Cayman Islands now being used as "PO Box" headquarters for tax avoidance purposes (see: Stanley Works, et. al).
>>The chorus of big baby billionaires bitching about how badly they're being treated;
>>and on, and on, and on.

Next thing we know, we're going to have to use the title "Lord" for these assholes.

Lord Dimon. Lord Bloomberg. Lord Romney. Lord (put a CEO's surname here). Do you like the sound of that?

I don't.

[bvar22]

11. Lord Clinton?

Free Trade & Privatization of the Commons is the foundation of Corporate Feudalism.

[elzenmahn]

22. Unfortunately, yes...

...and perhaps, Lady Clinton (for both Hillary and Chelsea - Chelsea had worked for a hedge fund, so we would have to include her, as well.)

[gregcrawford]

17. You nailed it!

In 2008, I thought Obama was the Second Coming; I was elated. Then he appointed Summers and Geithner, and I knew we'd been played, BIG time. Not long after, it's revealed that Goldman Sachs was his biggest single donor.
The point being, the Bad Guys have protection at the tippity-top. The police go psycho on anyone who exercises their Constitutional right to protest unjust laws and policies, and every politician is bought and paid for by malignant filth like Monsanto.
So, what's a decent person supposed to do, grab his or her ankles and just take it from these psychopaths? The system is rigged against us, top to bottom. We're already enslaved, to all intents and purposes, and the orange jumpsuits aren't too far behind.
I've been watching this shit unfold for fifty years, and there is no room for discussion. It's happening. We either fight on our feet, or die on our knees. I'm on the downhill slide to seventy, but I can still snap-shoot the seeds out of a grape, off-hand. And I. Don't. Kneel.

[elzenmahn]

23. Welcome to DU...

One thing we should intend to do, for as long as we can, is to NOT SHUT UP. TPTB win when we're silent.

Not me. And I hope neither you nor anybody else on DU.

Welcome to Democratic Underground.

[blue14u]

13. We know this is true ...we have become

an oligarchy. It's already...
The thing is now, what do we do to resolve this? Is there a peaceful revolution to be had?

We vote, we protest, we sign petitions, we campaign and post endlessly about the problem...

Is a violent war the only answer left?

Then we ask this smart group of people on DU to support someone like
Hillary Clinton to continue this trend, and reign over us like a queen.

I won't do it.
I will fight first. I will fight for my child, and nieces, and nephew's to have a better government than this. I will fight for future generations to have better than this oligarchy. ..We deserve better and they deserve better.

Why so many of you don't see Hillary will only carry what is now happening now well into the future, if she runs, and wins....well

It is beyond me that is ok with you...

[LongTomH]

15. I like the fact that Krugman says we shouldn't give up......unlike many here!

Keep fighting!

[adirondacker]

16. Touché!

[Anansi1171]

18. We need to divorce ourselves from the 1% and somehow deprieve them of our support in their economy.

But there is NO political support of a groundswell anywhere that I can see on the horizon.

[Dustlawyer]

19. Wolfpac.com. Publicly funded elections and campaign finance reform should be the ONLY

thing that we talk about, march, protest... It is the only peaceful way I know, by "peaceful" I mean cops still bashing and spraying, but no guns, just large numbers of committed people with a singular purpose. Now where we muster that is beyond me.

[elzenmahn]

24. Until a groundswell develops...

...there are a few things I can suggest:

1. One of the best ways, in my view, is to do your banking at a Credit Union rather than at a conventional bank like B of A. The rates and service are usually better, your deposits are insured like at a bank, and best of all, the depositors (read: YOU) own the Credit Union - not Jamie Dimon, not Goldman Sachs, not B of A. You can elect who sits on their boards, much like a school board or other local election;
2. Patronize co-op businesses wherever possible, for your basic shopping like groceries or the like. These are owned by members of the co-op, which usually include the employees themselves, and very often, the customers;
3. If at all possible, favor local-owned businesses over chains for most of your shopping. Yes, it's usually more expensive, but the money stays local, and your helping to give those local business owners and entrepreneurs a fighting chance against the behemoths;
4. Whatever you do, avoid the big-box retailers wherever possible - ESPECIALLY WAL-MART! Yes, they've got low, low prices - but that's exactly how they get you. The prices are the trap they use. Don't fall for it.
(I exclude Costco from this list, because of their reputation for paying their people better than most retailers. And their prices are still fairly decent, for the most part.)
5. Continue to educate yourself - and realize that the schools and the media aren't going to do it - their interests are now almost exactly aligned with Corporate America. Read the work of people like Chris Hedges, Naomi Klein (The Shock Doctrine, especially), John Perkins, Thom Hartmann, Robert Reich, and the late Mike Ruppert.
6. Whatever you do, DON'T SHUT UP! And don't let ANYONE tell you to shut up - and that means ANYONE, including those leaders who allegedly represent the "left" of the political spectrum, including our own President.

[DirkGently]

20. KNR. n/t

[concreteblue]

21. THe theme song for this:

[link:

#aid=P-dH3c1bLV4|]

#aid=P-dH3c1bLV4

[adirondacker]

28. I was expecting some Bachman Turner Overdrive

but I like your choice Much better!

Love It! Thanks for posting!