The Joys of Not Being European (They're Not What Conservatives Think)

[leftchick]

http://www.truthout.org/031909R

David Brooks is a perpetually interesting commentator to observe, in that he often channels a popular sentiment just as it is coming to a head, then proceeds to spin it into a completely backwards conclusion. A case in point is his recent New York Times op-ed, "A Commercial Republic" (March 17, 2009), in which he reminds us Americans that we are not (capitalism-shunning) Europeans (phew!), but a nation of "manic" strivers, who have an inbred need to work feverishly, to believe in a gospel of wealth, and to take risks. This "elemental" identity may seem threatened during a downtime, but is sure to manifest again stronger than ever, he assures us.

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What's interesting is who earns Brooks's sneers in this climate of timidity: "members of the educated class" who "explore and enjoy the humiliation of capitalist vulgarians"; the "noncommercial administration" whose president displays no passion" for "commercial drive and success." Brooks laments the "abashed"-ness of Finance, while giving props to populist "gospel of success" preachers like the recently maligned CNBC correspondent Jim Cramer - who is by the way clearly a dead ringer for Horatio Alger.

The thing is, dynamic, healthy capitalism is a separable dish from crazy financial adventurism with a side of legitimized corporate swindling - something Brooks manages to totally elide. The banality of his point resides in the straw man he creates: This Indomitable Spirit of Capitalism he champions is something approximately zero members of the Obama administration - and an imperceptible percentage of the "educated class" - would actually like to see crushed.

Almost all of us want all of us to work hard, think big, and make money. The abashed vulgarians whose humiliation should really be explored and enjoyed are the ones who made a mockery of this American boldness, by creating a form of risk that was all but guaranteed to torpedo the very wealth bold labors helped create. John Stewart didn't go after CNBC star Jim Cramer because he was encouraging the masses' golden dreams, but because he was shepherding them blind to the dangerously stacked casino he used to help run.

[marmar]

1. In a perfect world I'd be living in a canal house in Amsterdam's Jordaan district......

..... heading over (by tram) to Centraal Station to board the Thalys for my long weekend in Paris.

[CTyankee]

2. And you could visit me in my perfect world in a small house outside of Florence.

Just not on those long weekends in Rome I'd be taking...

Ah, fond dreams...