General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: United States has lost 32 percent of its manufacturing jobs since the year 2000 [View all]pampango
(24,692 posts)"And our gilded-age leve inequality, childhood poverty, worst social mobility in the developed world?"
"Are caused by slashing the safety net, eliminating progressive taxes, weakening unions and deregulating corporations and the financial industry. We've been through this before.
Progressive countries with very equitable distributions of income, much lower poverty rates and much better social mobility have experienced the same decline in manufacturing employment. What progressive countries do differently to achieve these benefits is higher/more progressive taxation, strong safety nets, empowered unions and effective corporate regulation."
Do you want proof that slashing our safety net, cutting taxes for the rich, weakening our unions and deregulating corporations has led to "our gilded-age level inequality, childhood poverty, worst social mobility in the developed world"? Or that the progressive countries in Europe, Canada, Australia and others (which have higher/progressive taxation, stronger unions, better safety nets and better regulations) have much more equitable distributions of income, lower levels of poverty and improved social mobility?