Class Struggle: American workers have a chance to be heard.
BY JIM WEBB
Wednesday, November 15, 2006 12:01 a.m. ESTThe most important–and unfortunately the least debated–issue in politics today is our society’s steady drift toward a class-based system, the likes of which we have not seen since the 19th century. America’s top tier has grown infinitely richer and more removed over the past 25 years. It is not unfair to say that they are literally living in a different country. Few among them send their children to public schools; fewer still send their loved ones to fight our wars. They own most of our stocks, making the stock market an unreliable indicator of the economic health of working people. The top 1% now takes in an astounding 16% of national income, up from 8% in 1980. The tax codes protect them, just as they protect corporate America, through a vast system of loopholes.
The most important–and unfortunately the least debated–issue in politics today is our society’s steady drift toward a class-based system, the likes of which we have not seen since the 19th century. America’s top tier has grown infinitely richer and more removed over the past 25 years. It is not unfair to say that they are literally living in a different country. Few among them send their children to public schools; fewer still send their loved ones to fight our wars. They own most of our stocks, making the stock market an unreliable indicator of the economic health of working people. The top 1% now takes in an astounding 16% of national income, up from 8% in 1980. The tax codes protect them, just as they protect corporate America, through a vast system of loopholes.
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Mr. Webb is the Democratic senator-elect from Virginia.
Very much worth reading the rest. I am very much (and very positively!) surprised to see this coming from Senator-elect Webb, who as you may recall was in Reagan’s cabinet… I’d assumed he was going to be one of the more conservative new Senators. Instead, it looks like he’s going to be one to watch in a very good way: we need more folks in Washington willing to talk about class issues and our economic problems in an honest manner. (former) Senator Edwards brought these issues up in the 2004 presidential campaign but for the most part they seem to be forgotten in all of the other hot-button debates whether on the so-called “war on terror” or on “values.”
via DailyKos, part of their coverage of why the meme that “the new Democrats are conservative” is a myth.
(fixed blockquote in the wrong place bad line break)