THE UNITED STATES OF APATHY

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The Financialization of the U.S. Economy
has gone hand in hand with this country's
economic decline. It is not a coincidence.

A SUITABLE CASE FOR DELIBERATION: DYSFUNCTIONAL GROWTH, A DELUDED AND DISTRACTED CITIZENRY; A NATION IN DECLINE.

When I first started writing TITANIC NATION back in 2007, I was far from sure that America was in decline; although I was certainly aware of the possibility. Three years later, I am now entirely sure of the fact despite the official pronouncements that we are now officially out of recession, and that the numbers indicate that the economy is actually growing.

A country that cannot - or chooses not to - care adequately for the wellbeing of ALL its citizens cannot be deemed to be in a satisfactory state.

Growth, at least as expressed primarily in terms of GDP – Gross Domestic Product – is a false god. In the United States of America today it means an unparalleled concentration of power and wealth in the hands of a few, an army of careerists who serve them, and the steady erosion of the economic stability of much of the rest of the population. It makes a nonsense of democracy. It turns the Constitution into a legal instrument of oppression to be wielded by the privileged few. Above all, even if you don’t have an atom of compassion in your body and believe that un-regulated capitalism is the way things should be, it palpably isn’t working. The U.S. economy is losing ground – and jobs - under nearly every heading.

Although the U.S. does possess many excellent journalists, who should be entirely capable of warning about our plight in detail, there is a general media tendency to focus on individual issues rather than connecting the dots – and then to work that individual story to death. Combine that with the widespread practice of treating the news as entertainment, and one can be drowned in ‘news’ and still not be aware of what is really going on.

As with much in current American life, we are given the form but not the substance.

OUR PROBLEMS ARE FUNDAMENTAL, STRUCTURAL AND SERIOUS

This country’s problems are fundamental, and structural, and vastly more serious and deeply rooted than is generally believed. They reflect a failure of many of this Great Nation’s institutions and practices, combined with a largely apathetic citizenry and a bought and paid for political leadership far more focused on power and personal advantage than the public good.  

I have discussed much of this in detail in my book, but scarcely a day goes by without further evidence accumulating that the American Way of Life is systemically flawed.  

Less that be seen as merely more criticism of an excessively consumer oriented culture, or an indictment of a banking system that continues to fail this country badly – both valid criticisms – arguably an even more serious concern relates to the disturbing reality that so much of our fundamental organizational structure palpably doesn’t work.

Our health system is broken; our educational system is inadequate; U.S. business corporations are largely indifferent to their workers, shareholders and the public good, and, in all too many cases, have morphed into little more than private fiefdoms run for the benefit of a few; unemployment has become a public disgrace and a source of misery for millions; and even where pensions still exist, it is increasingly clear that many, if not most, are dramatically underfunded.

The most worrying aspect of all this is an apparent conspiracy between our political leadership and the electorate they serve. Our leadership consistently fails to lay out the full extent of the problems we face, and we citizens seem to be more focused on our electronic toys than on an increasing precarious future.

JUST ONE EXAMPLE OF U.S. INSTITUTIONAL FAILURE - STATE & LOCAL PENSIONS FUNDS ARE UNDER-FUNDED BY $3.5 TRILLION.
For instance, when considering the building blocks of our lives, reflect that state and local government pension funds alone are underfunded to the tune of $3.5 trillion. And the less said about other pension plans or the lack of them the better at this point – if you want to enjoy a good night’s sleep. Concurrently, the disturbingly well financed Right Wing have Social Security in their sights – and may well succeed in eroding it. And they won’t stop there.

Felix Rohatyn, a financier, and one of the principals behind the rescue of New York City from bankruptcy in the Seventies, has summed up the situation with his customary wit. “It seems to me that crying wolf is probably a good thing to do at this point.”

But with Netflix switching to on demand viewing, and Facebook launching new features, is any red blooded American concerned to listen?

The irony is that we have never been better equipped to solve our exceedingly long list of problems.