this in today’s Guardian UK, a study prepared by the British Ministry of Defence: Revolution, flashmobs, and brain chips. A grim vision of the future

[…]

“The middle classes could become a revolutionary class, taking the role envisaged for the proletariat by Marx,” says the report. The thesis is based on a growing gap between the middle classes and the super-rich on one hand and an urban under-class threatening social order: “The world’s middle classes might unite, using access to knowledge, resources and skills to shape transnational processes in their own class interest”. Marxism could also be revived, it says, because of global inequality. An increased trend towards moral relativism and pragmatic values will encourage people to seek the “sanctuary provided by more rigid belief systems, including religious orthodoxy and doctrinaire political ideologies, such as popularism and Marxism”.

[…]

H/T to ask

what the pols seem to be missing.

BooMan had an excellent post friday that asked the question: What are We Doing…

it occurred to me when I found this poll that what we’re not doing is listening to what’s going on in the minds of the country, particularly, the demographic that is commonly referred to as the working man, aka middle class.

there is an extremely large segment of that threatened species feeling the pain of corporate malfeasance, greed, and outright thievery, coupled with an inept, ineffective, and uncaring government. the level of dissatisfaction with the current mis-administration runs deep and wide, and has lead to an unpresented, in contemporary times, dissatisfaction and overall sense the need for change. this coupled with the almost pathological sense of helplessness among a very large proportion of working americans does not bode well for the status quo.

this poll, conducted by Lake Research Partners on behalf of Change to
Win shows a profound loss of hope and confidence, on a personal level, coupled with …a stunning reflection of anxiety, anger and demand for action rising in Working America…

WASHINGTON, DC – Economic conditions for workers are deteriorating so dramatically in the new American economy that an overwhelming majority, nearly 70 percent, now say that basic security – not opportunity – is their number one concern, according to a new survey released today. The finding is a stunning reflection of the anxiety, anger and demand for action rising in Working America in the global economy. Among the other key results of the poll of 800 non-supervisory workers:

    *Nearly 80 percent of workers, both college and non-college      
        alike, no longer believe the next generation will be better off.
        Nearly half think their children will be worse off.

    *Nearly 80 percent of workers view multinational corporations    
        as too powerful, and have driven down wages, eliminated health
        care and retirement security, and disregarded labor laws.

    *Nearly 70 percent of workers feel that government doesn’t          
        take action to rein in greedy and unethical behavior by
        corporations and CEOs.

what does this mean? I think it portends the rapidly approaching shift in attitudes of a huge segment of the voting public that is being ignored or made light of by the powers that be. this is a major miscalculation, failure if you will, because union people GOTV.  that their issues are being ignored, or even more galling, being payed lip service to, by the majority of the current slate of presidential candidates of both parties, is a huge tactical error. my take on the positions that the current slate of candidates is espousing, on both sides of the aisle, is that they ignore this growing sentiment at their peril. the lone exception, imo, being Edwards who has taken a stance that appears to identify and recognize this sentiment.

it’s considerably past time for the likes of the DLC, and their corporate enablers to control the discussion. there is a change coming, hopefully at the ballot box, but there’s revolution in the air, and to date, it’s being ignored.

hopefully, this dissatisfaction will make it’s way into the mainstream politic…the candidate that can/will tap into this discontent, and angst will be the next president, with a major mandate to move this country significantly to the left, in the direction of a New Deal for the 21st Century….is anybody listening?

this is fertile ground, and has the potential to shift the primary focus of government back in the direction of, by and for the people. hopefully, someone’s paying attention especially in the netroots. this is an area where significant inroads can be made.

I encourage you to go to the linked survey and read it…very interesting.

and yes, I know the old saw…lies, damn lies and statistics.

0 0 votes
Article Rating