http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/04/08/our_imagined_economy/
We say, "There’s something wrong with the economy," rather than, "I’m getting screwed by the oil companies, the banks, and my employer." Things get mystified and depersonalized. We say there’s a "recession," as if were some sort of bad weather, rather than pointing our fingers at the people who brought it down on us and who are, for the most part, profiting still. Maybe, instead of talking about "the economy" and "the recession" we should be talking about the ongoing looting and concerted attack on our standard of living --which will likely end only when there’s nothing left to squeeze out of us.
This isn’t just semantics. If there’s something wrong with "the economy," we call in the economists, we think about intervention by the Fed, and things on that level. But if someone is actually attacking us, we’re more likely to focus on how we can start working for change right now, with whatever tools are at hand.
Barbara Ehrenreich, at TMP cafe.
I've liked her writing for a long time, and she nails something vital with this post.
I enjoyed reading Nickel and Dimed, even though her writing about being a house cleaner and broke was very different than my experience of being one in Seattle at the same time, and a little melodramatic by comparison.
We're being steadily screwed by big media and big lobbies and big scumbags in congress.
But since it's going to rain for the next three days, I think I'll drink a beer and eat some eggrolls and not think about how frelled up things are.
We say, "There’s something wrong with the economy," rather than, "I’m getting screwed by the oil companies, the banks, and my employer." Things get mystified and depersonalized. We say there’s a "recession," as if were some sort of bad weather, rather than pointing our fingers at the people who brought it down on us and who are, for the most part, profiting still. Maybe, instead of talking about "the economy" and "the recession" we should be talking about the ongoing looting and concerted attack on our standard of living --which will likely end only when there’s nothing left to squeeze out of us.
This isn’t just semantics. If there’s something wrong with "the economy," we call in the economists, we think about intervention by the Fed, and things on that level. But if someone is actually attacking us, we’re more likely to focus on how we can start working for change right now, with whatever tools are at hand.
Barbara Ehrenreich, at TMP cafe.
I've liked her writing for a long time, and she nails something vital with this post.
I enjoyed reading Nickel and Dimed, even though her writing about being a house cleaner and broke was very different than my experience of being one in Seattle at the same time, and a little melodramatic by comparison.
We're being steadily screwed by big media and big lobbies and big scumbags in congress.
But since it's going to rain for the next three days, I think I'll drink a beer and eat some eggrolls and not think about how frelled up things are.
1 comment:
http://nysun.com/news/food-rationing-confronts-breadbasket-world
Post a Comment