Great Embarrassments of an Unequal Society
Former Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, center, speaks during a news conference to announce the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's donation of $51.2 million dollars to the New York City school system at Morris High School in the Bronx, New York, Wednesday, September 17, 2003. He is flanked by Joel Klein, former chancellor of the city's Department of Education and former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
America has experienced "gush-up" rather than "trickle-down." The shame is on the adherents of unregulated free-market capitalism, who have assaulted us with the message of "winner-take-all" wealth over the common good. George Will perpetuates the neoliberal myth by quoting one of his idols, John Tamny: "Income inequality in a capitalist system is truly beautiful...it provides the incentive for creative people to gamble on new ideas.."
But in the realm of reality, there are many reasons for embarrassment:
1. Just Because They're Rich, Billionaires are Trusted to Design Our Education and Health Systems
Bill Gates leads the way here. He got rich in questionable ways from technology, and as a result much of America feels he's qualified to be a great humanitarian. Because of his corporate-endowed foundation, says Arundhati Roy, Bill Gates can "find himself designing education, health, and agriculture policies, not just for the U.S. government but for governments all over the world."
In addition to Gates, education 'reformers' include Mark Zuckerberg and his fellow billionaires Eli Broad and Michael Bloomberg and Rupert Murdoch and the Walton family, none of whom have much educational experience, and all of whom are promoting education reform with lots of standardized testing and little accountability to the public.
In agriculture, wealthy western philanthropists decide the future of African farmers from a corporate point of view, with a sense of disdain for traditional methods of small farming.
Much the same in health care, with World Health Organization director Margaret Chan summarizing the role of money in global decision-making: "My budget [is] highly earmarked, so it is driven by what I call donor interests."
2. A Prime Destroyer of Low-Income Homes is Awarded for His "Contributions to Society"
As part of the 2015 New York University's 183rd Commencement, hedge fund billionaire John Paulson received an award for his "Outstanding Contributions to Society." The commencement program addressed him: "..Your influence is felt throughout broad sectors of society..your commitment to..a better quality of life for people across the world."
In 2007 Paulson had conspired with Goldman Sachs to create packages of risky subprime mortgages, so that in anticipation of a housing crash he could use other people's money to bet against his personally designed sure-to-fail financial instruments. His successful bet against American households paid him $3.7 billion.
3. As America Adds $30 Trillion in New Wealth, 6 Million More Kids Go on Food Stamps
The number of children on food stamps grew from 9.5 million in 2007 to 16 million in 2014, at the same time that U.S. wealth was growing from $52 trillion to over $83 trillion.
4. 40% of Food Wasted.....and 40% of Households Food-Insecure
According to Feeding America, almost 50 million households, or about 40 percent of American homes, experienced food insecurity at some point in 2013.
At the same time, the Natural Resources Defense Council estimates that 40 percent of food in the United States goes uneaten.
5. Graduate Students Work 6+ Years for a PhD, then Need the Safety Net to Survive Great Embarrassments of an Unequal Society | Common Dreams | Breaking News & Views for the Progressive Community: