Your definition of competent and my definition of competent are vastly different. I legitimately think after the McCarthyist red scare purges, we lost all competent administrators of government (the Bureau of Labor Statistics was founded by a commie); every administration since FDR has been adamantly trying to shutter the government, one way or another.
I think Dick Cheney was competent in an extremely evil way.
I would agree with you in the sense the US hasn’t had anyone who could improve the empire and make it more powerful, probably since the 70s,
But I’d say the post Reagan Liberals and neocons could at least steer the ship.
The current guys are removed from the guys who were removed from improving the empire,and they can’t even steer the parts of ship anymore.
The flipside is because inequality is so bad the top 10% is responsible for 50% of the spending. Which is why it all feels so k shaped, things are fine or even getting better for the well enough off and mega rich, worse for everyone else. Who is in that top 10% is closing and people are falling off and out but thats certainly why things can feel so immiserating and yet it feels like everything has been frozen up politically. Also credit, the amount of consumer debt is growing and I dont think they’re even counting stuff like klarna yet as credit
I think that’s also why we’re seeing conspicuous consumption creeping into markets that previously didn’t have that dynamic. When wealth is that concentrated it pushes businesses to market themselves as the luxurious, exclusive option to appeal to that income strata and rationalize large markups to make up for the fallout in the spending of lower income stratas.
we’re seeing conspicuous consumption creeping into markets that previously didn’t have that dynamic.
Like what for example?
This video on the hyperinflation for the hyper wealthy covers the huge markups aspect to cover for the lopsided income strata, but mostly talks about existing conspicuous consumption. However, one area I’ve noticed for emerging conspicuous consumption is sporting events. Sure, there’s always been a divide between the good seats and the nosebleeds, and particular events like the Super Bowl carry higher ticket prices. The difference now is that new stadiums get built, and older stadiums retrofitted, not for maximizing the number of total seats but for most luxury suites, more high end dining options. It’s a switch towards sports games as events for the everyday man to places for the wealthy to get luxury experiences.
Thanks.
I found a YouTube link in your comment. Here are links to the same video on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:
I think a big part is owning your housing means you can spend more on other things,
But millennials and younger still rent and rent is increasing
The maximize short term profit ain’t working boss
Enslaving humanity means there’s gonna be more competition between the capitalists. Thus we all benefit.
-john silicon
You’re so right, father of my real life best friend Sam.
I admit wholeheartedly I don’t understand economics, but as far as I can tell the richest in the country basically now have all the money or nearly all of it; why do they need the 70% to keep spending? You win, you have their money; they can’t spend it because you already have it, what are you alarmed about?
