3/11/2018 Study By MIT Economist: U.S.

Has Regressed To A Third-World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens - The Intellectualist

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Study By MIT Economist: U.S. Has Regressed To A Third-
World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens

by YossarianJohnson 4 days 

America divided – this concept increasingly graces political discourse in the U.S.,
pitting left against right, conservative thought against the liberal agenda. But for
decades, Americans have been rearranging along another divide, one just as stark if
not far more significant – a chasm once bridged

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3/11/2018 Study By MIT Economist: U.S. Has Regressed To A Third-World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens - The Intellectualist

America divided – this concept increasingly graces political discourse in the U.S.,
pitting left against right, conservative thought against the liberal agenda. But for
decades, Americans have been rearranging along another divide, one just as stark if
not far more significant – a chasm once bridged by a flourishing middle class.

Peter Temin, Professor Emeritus of Economics at MIT, believes the ongoing death of
“middle America” has sparked the emergence of two countries within one, the
hallmark of developing nations.

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In his new book, The Vanishing Middle Class: Prejudice and Power in a Dual
Economy, Temin paints a bleak picture where one country has a bounty of resources
and power, and the other toils day after day with minimal access to the long-coveted
American dream.

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3/11/2018 Study By MIT Economist: U.S. Has Regressed To A Third-World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens - The Intellectualist

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In his view, the United States is shifting toward an economic and political makeup
more similar to developing nations than the wealthy, economically stable nation it
has long been.

Temin applied W. Arthur Lewis’s economic model – designed to understand the

workings of developing countries – to the United States in an effort to document how
inequality has grown in America.

The parallels are unsettling. As noted by the Institute for New Economic Thinking:

In the Lewis model of a dual economy, much of the low-wage sector has little
influence over public policy. Check. The high-income sector will keep wages down in
the other sector to provide cheap labor for its businesses. Check. Social control is
used to keep the low-wage sector from challenging the policies favored by the high-
income sector. Mass incarceration – check. The primary goal of the richest members
of the high-income sector is to lower taxes. Check. Social and economic mobility is
low. Check.

Temin describes multiple contributing factors in the nation’s arrival at this place,
from exchanging the War on Poverty for the War on Drugs to money in politics and
systemic racism. He outlines the ways in which racial prejudice continues to lurk

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3/11/2018 Study By MIT Economist: U.S. Has Regressed To A Third-World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens - The Intellectualist

below the surface, allowing politicians to appeal to the age old “desire to preserve the
inferior status of blacks”, encouraging white low-wage workers to accept their lesser
place in society.

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“We have a structure that predetermines winners and losers. We are not getting the
benefits of all the people who could contribute to the growth of the economy, to
advances in medicine or science which could improve the quality of life for everyone
– including some of the rich people,” he laments.

The antidote, as prescribed by Temin, is likely a tough sell in today’s political climate.

Expanding education, updating infrastructure, forgiving mortgage and student loan

debt, and overall working to boost social mobility for all Americans are bound to be
seen as too liberal by many policy makers.

Until the course is changed, he warns, the middle class will continue to fade and
America will remain unsustainably divided.

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pmahcud 21 hrs
(deleted message)

Such a long diatribe and all it describes is a cliched right-wing talking point treatise with nothing
but fantasy to support such tired arguments and the usual absurd simpli cation of rampant free
market capitalism vs communism, and one wonders in what ivory tower do YOU live?

If what you say were true, European countries would be at the bottom of the list of 3rd World
countries due to the fact that their governments make health care and education affordable, while
not pissing insane sums of money on military industrial complex overkill. Haven't we enough
nukes already to obliterate all life on earth?

Can you cite one successful example in the history of civilization whereby a society simply
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3/11/2018 Study By MIT Economist: U.S. Has Regressed To A Third-World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens - The Intellectualist
Can you cite one successful example in the history of civilization whereby a society simply
depended on everyone to become successful on their own? Ayn Rand proved the myopia of
libertarian utopia long ago when she fell fatally ill and depended on the government for her Social
Security and Medicare bene ts, yet her most staunch supporters aim to wipe those programs out.

Calling the social safety net communistic is sheer ignorance as is blaming it for the demise of the
middle class, when, in fact, it all started when a B movie actor became president and imposed
what George Bush at the time called "Voodoo Economics," the same trickle down tax slashing
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insanity that has again happened because the lthy rich Koch Brothers, who inherited their daddy's
fortune made in Soviet Russia blackmailed the GOP-controlled Congress to vote on the even
greater tax-slashing bill of our latest grossely unquali ed reality TV star president, who inherited
his fortune from his daddy and who is a puppet of Russia.
The fools who tossed away their money on Trump University are the same as the millions who buy
into such fantasy, while people saddled with outrageous student debts, medical and
pharmaceutical bills and who haven't been born into a uence will never be saved or motivated by
tax cutting which will end up on their shoulders again the next time a too big to fail bank needs a
bailout. Trump has scammed on this country with the tired bankrupt ideology people like yourself
still buy into but it never has and never will work and most Americans have gured this out.

Blink182 19 hrs Reply

I am a disabled individual who tries to work as much as I am able. I work and strive for that elusive
American Dream and you know what it's gotten me? Poorer and poorer no matter what I do. Every
time I try to make progress the system shuts me down. The only people who say that you can "pull
yourself up out of poverty if you work harder" have never had the experience of true poverty. I am
not talking about being a little late on a bill or having to rearrange your stocks. I am talking about
systemic forced poverty so that the lower class can stay where they are and be a good low-wage
working force to further the rich. The poor are always the target and heaven forbid they get some
assistance so they don't starve to death. Right wing war mongers, the ones who want to arm the
teachers, the ones who take health care from the disabled, elderly, children and babies...the ones
who thing trump is awesome because he is rich and sits on a gold toilet tweeting insanity..those
that would keep all the poor from making it in any way they can by opposing any and all aid that
would help give a step up so those who were born with less or no pluses in life could perhaps start
a little business or something. You know why people don't just go "out and buy a little cart if they
can make burgers?"

Because you have to have money to buy a cart, you have to have money to do advertisements, you
have to have money to buy the food and supplies. If you are living on subsitnance how can you
even start anything when you have nothing to start it with and are busy starving to death????

Because of this sick society I owe over 20,000 dollars in medical bills, haven't seen a dentist in
years, have not had a car in a decade, can't afford food many times, have to pay to work because
of forced poverty via social programs and their elitest attitudes and meanwhile have to take the
abuse of rich, white people in power who like to put us down???
AND I get to see YOUR president and my nightmare walking in and adding more stress to us b/c he
has never had to work hard for anything in his life? can just borrow money from daddy to buy that
burger cart right??? This society makes me so fucking sick!!!!
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3/11/2018 Study By MIT Economist: U.S. Has Regressed To A Third-World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens - The Intellectualist

Morgaine 17 hrs Reply

"two Americas (famous Obama campaign line)"

Nope. Two Americas goes all the way back to the Kennedy Administration, when Michael
Harrington (who wrote the BOOK The Two Americas) advised him and later Johnson on the War
on Poverty.

Your utter lack of knowledge and understanding about what you say reveals the typical ignorant
arrogance of the PWM misogynist right-wingers-- now TERRIFIED b/c their unchallenged control of
society is, nally, coming to an end.
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Oh, to have the con dence and privilege of a mediocre white man in the USA :O

LOL

Bobalexander 17 hrs
(deleted message)

The greatness of our country came from a balance between capitalism and social
programs. Look at the great results of the GI Bill. Look how Social Security and Medicare alowed
our seniors to live well in their old age. No one wants to stop capitalism. Yet when capitalism
works as planned workers lose their jobs from productivity inprovements. What good is it being
wealthy if you have to walk over other Americans? People like you don't care for the middle class,
so why should they listen to you. The conservative working class will nd out soon enough that
your promises just didn't pan out.

Kay54 12 hrs Reply

All of this started long ago, but it was Bill Clinton that took the Democratic party to the extreme
right. Clinton exploited racism and bigotry in the working class to get policies of hate passed
against the poverty stricken with welfare reform (no reform at all, it was gutted) and the crime bill,
the new Jim Crowe, putting minorities and poor whites in prisons for pro t. Then came NAFTA,
that hollowed out the manufacturing base of America, taking 55,000 plants and 600,000 + jobs
with it. He also repealed Glass Steagall, deregulating banks that led to the 08 crash... Funny
Democrats just voted to do the same with Dodd Frank setting us up for the next inevitable
economic collapse. Then Bush and the faux war on terror. We nd the terrorists. Bush was a
psychopath and the nail in the co n to America with endless war for which Obama continued
against ve more countries. He also expanded the police and security state, removed more of our,
privacy rights, civil rights. The man who won the Nobel Peace prize, dropped 30, 723 bombs in
2016. He also cut food stamps eight times, cut housing assistance and the program for hearing to
help low income Americans pay their heating bills in winter and summer time. Whatever is left of
the safety net, Trump NEOLIBERALS and neocons will gut. And Russiagate, initially to cover up
Democratic party primary rigging and election fraud has now turned into manufacturing consent
for war against Russia. Th US elite gives not one damned about us. And if we do not wake up soon
a third world war will meet us our end. War has go us 22 trillion in debt with the DOD missing 8.5
trillion more....wake up. Not much time left. Read global Research.. great site to understand what
is going on and free from corporate media propaganda

Interested 4 hrs Reply

Everyone's opinions are very interesting here. I remember in 1950, growing up with my
grandparents in swampy land Florida they had very little money But because they could go
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3/11/2018 Study By MIT Economist: U.S. Has Regressed To A Third-World Nation For Most Of Its Citizens - The Intellectualist
grandparents in swampy land, Florida, they had very little money. But, because they could go
shing in local streams, grow their own food, make their own clothes, raise their own chickens,
have their own fruit trees, have a little piece of land, practice their own medicine with herbs, i..e,
self-su cient, they had good lives. Now most of those streams are polluted or on private property.
Not everyone wants to be rich, this was never an American dream until Reagan. I feel Americans
are not educated. Look at the Amish, I always say that they will inherit the earth because they are
in community and can take care of themselves.

PS: We never had a gun, even though we lived out in the country next to an alligator-infested creek.

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