An interesting piece at the Huffington Post by Peter Drier, E.P. Clapp Distinguished Professor of Politics, Occidental College (via Hot Air headlines)
Can We Head Off a Long Hot Summer of Riots and Rebellion?
The nation’s attention has been focused on the recent riots in Baltimore, but the harsh truth is that they could have happened in any major city. Indeed, we could see a long hot summer of urban (and, as in places like Ferguson, suburban) riots that would make the two-day disturbances in Baltimore seem trivial in comparison.
We can surely expect more turmoil next year, too, if social and economic conditions continue to deteriorate, and if candidates for president and Congress fail to make specific suggestions for addressing the suffering and hardship facing the nation.
Huh. Interesting that he pretty much excused Obama for these deteriorating social and economic conditions, and failed to mention that these problems are occurring in deep Democratic areas.
But promises can only quell riots for so long. Hope soon turns to frustration, and then anger, unless there’s real action to change conditions.
He just described Democratic Party policies since the late 1960’s.
Fixing racist police practices and bias in our criminal justice system is important. But the underlying cause of riots is the hopelessness that comes with persistent poverty, unemployment, slum housing, widespread sickness, underfunded schools and lack of opportunity to escape such intolerable conditions.
Forty plus years of Democratic Party policies and control in these areas. Mr. Drier goes on to describe how to fix all this. Did you guess that all his ideas revolve are more of the same programs and policies that have failed, essentially doubling down? He really, really wants to “Invest in Grassroots Organizing and Coalition Building”, giving these same people a “voice in their cities and the larger society”, noting “that voluntary associations and interest groups today are titled toward affluent Americans”, so, framing this in terms of class warfare, a notion that has certainly helped increase strife in the United States, particularly the last 6 years under Obama.
He goes on to note how they have won some “significant victories” over the past few years, with things like an increase in the minimum wage, such as in LA, which just raised the rate to $15 an hour (which will ultimately hurt low and middle class consumers), free full day kindergarten in NY, and, wait for it….
In California, there are significant efforts to curb carbon emissions and explicitly link those efforts to job creation and investment in low-income communities.
Sign. Of course Mr. Drier had to bring Hotcoldwetdry into the mix, but, he fails to mention that these policies hurt the poor, and destroy jobs and income. They can help the big 1%ers who are able to lobby for choice grants and loans from the Government, though.
He provides more complaints about how bad the economy is (without mentioning Obama and Democratic Party policies), leading to his specific ideas, which are the same ol’ same ol’, like
- Guaranteeing Good Wages and Benefits. Requiring every job in the United States to meet a minimum standard of quality — in wages, benefits, and working conditions — and offer unhindered access to collective representation and a real voice for workers. (they love giving away other people’s money, and don’t seem to care that this will raise the cost of living for the poor)
- Unlocking Opportunity in the Poorest Communities. Investing resources on a large scale to restart the economy in places where racial bias and sustained disinvestment have produced communities of concentrated poverty. (they’ve done this for 40+ years. What have they achieved?)
- Taxing concentrated wealth. Funding new investments in job creation, care, and economic renewal by taxing those who benefit most from the current economic model – investors, financiers, wealth managers, and individuals in the highest income brackets. (you knew this one had to be there)
- Valuing Families. Ending the systematic devaluation of care work, which disproportionately keeps women in poverty, by making high quality child care available to all working parents, raising the quality of jobs in the early childhood education and care fields, transforming homecare and providing financial support to unpaid caregivers. (from the party that pushes irresponsible sex and abortion on demand)
and, of course
Building a Clean Energy Economy. Using the large-scale investments required for transition to a clean energy future to create millions of good jobs that are accessible to all Americans, especially those hardest hit by hard times — workers of color, women, and economically distressed communities.
Perhaps we could just raze these cities, replace them with wind turbines and solar farms, and move all these folks to areas which aren’t double and tripling down on Liberal stupidity. Transitioning to alternatives is good for the environment, and will eventually replace much, if not most or all, of the current use of fossil fuels. But, right now, this won’t help the poor at all. First, it raises the cost of energy and the cost of living, hurting the poor. Second, the jobs have been shown to only appear in small numbers, not the big numbers constantly predicted. Third, how does this help unskilled poor folks in Democrat inner cities with poor educations? They won’t get hired. And, as costs go up, companies will hire fewer people.
It’s no wonder Democrat cities are failing, particularly those that are majority-minority.
Thanks for linking to this. The more folks that read it the better off we’ll be.
Who would have thought that you’d use a well-written and smart progressive policy description as a vehicle to bash Obama and Democrats!
Many of the reasons for the problems in cities may only be solved by Federal intervention
There are 3 branches of our government, why are you not putting any of the discredit on Congress that is under the GOP control? You blame Obama BUT has Congress given him all the tools he says he needs?
These Democratic cities are the economic engines of the country often in blue states that pay out more to the Feds than they get back from DC
Enjoy putting the blame on Dems? People might pay more attention IF Red states were even close to paying as much in taxes as they demand from DC
The Red Staters are the real welfare queens of the United States of America
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/05/which-states-are-givers-and-which-are-takers/361668/
So before you complain about these blue cities, PAY YOUR DAMN SHARE
Of course. And how exactly does that work? Since for 200 plus years we have had a federal government and it aint solved the problem yet. Explain please how the Federal government is going to win the war on poverty when they have been fighting it for 50 years and losing ground?
MORE MONEY? Raise them taxes?
This is such a tiresome argument. For two years obama had a veto proof congress. They did nothing except spend 2 years working on DoDD/Frank and Obamacare. The GOP has passed 100’s of bills only to sit on Harry Reids desk because he thought doing nothing was better then doing something….Finally the GOP took control of the Senate 5 months ago and now suddenly everything is the GOP’s fault….lololol.
IF your baseline is the amount of taxes you can squeeze out of the people so the government can run everything then you are correct….Large cities are predominantly Democratic. Which makes you wonder why they vote for Democrats since they are not getting anything in return for their money. I actually have this same question for the Jews as well. Progressive despise jews yet they jews just keep feeding the democratic machine all their money.
Two main reasons for this. One the Red States are usually suffering extreme poverty because the Federal government hasnt been able to figure out how to end poverty. Secondly large states as in land area have a tremendous amount of Military bases, Interstate Highways, Railways and National parks that are paid for by all those people in Blue states who dont have that stuff.
If the government did feel it was their duty to fund everything under the sun perhaps less of your BLUE tax dollars would be going to Wyoming for Yellowstone, Tetons, and a million miles of interstate highways not to mention 1/3rd of the USA’s Nukalar deterence. Same for North Dakota, South Dakota.
This is mostly true. But why is that. Even your article you quoted pointed out that the South was controlled by Democrats who put in place tons of federal programs in these states.. Over the years poor people migrate to states that give them the most aid. Poverty rates in poor states continue to raise despite the US government POURING tons of money into welfare programs.
Every state pays taxes. Every state collects money from the federal government in order to survive.
The Federal government has intruded on every state until its become a multi headed hydra that invades every aspect of state and local government.
My wife is a school teacher She spends half the year going to seminars learning what she can and cant say in a class room. All federally mandated of course because heaven forbid that a child might have his/her feelings hurt by being told to SHUT UP or SIT DOWN….no its “INSIDE VOICE PLEASE or Please dont disrespect your fellow students by not being seated”
and if a teachers dares throw up her hands and says shut up……..well gosh he/she could just very well end up in jail…..literally.
The Federal government has become a monster all at the becon call of the communist progressive movement in this country…….
IF I WAS YOU…I would be very angry at all these taxes leaving your state for a red state and demand that it stop.
?
Probably not. What Occupy Wall Street, The Tea Party (partly), Black Lives Matter, Livable Wage etc have in common is their largely grass-roots character. People are exhausted by the Government-Corporate complex.
The decimation of the working and middle classes is not natural economic evolution but results from specific government policies that reward the wealthy at the expense of everyone else. Trade deals (yes you, Obama and TPP), policies on immigration, labor, taxation, employment, the Fed (monetary), and fiscal decisions (remember when we built bridges, schools and roads?). These policies are not Democratic or Republican, they are Plutocratic.
The decades long experiment of enriching the wealthy and expecting this to lift the working classes has been falsified by over 40 years of evidence.
Read Professor Drier’s essay. Listen to what Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have to say. Listen to some of what Senator Rand Paul has to say. The traditional Republican and Democratic messages are becoming increasingly untenable. Today, every candidate is a populist. Stay involved.
I gotta say, I agree with almost everything Jeff wrote in his 2nd comment. He makes some good points. Don’t have time to get into them right now, just had to write that.