The study that shows why Occupy Wall Street struck a nerve – The Washington Post

If Americans were to realize they’ve been the victims of Republican-style redistribution — stealing from the poor to give to the rich — the whole political atmosphere might change. I believe that’s one reason why the Occupy Wall Street protests have struck such a nerve. The far-right and its media mouthpieces have worked themselves into a frenzy trying to disregard, dismiss or discredit the demonstrations. Thus far, fortunately, all this effort has been to no avail. …

First, the system is rigged. Wealthy individuals and corporations have disproportionate influence over public policy because of the often decisive role that money plays in elections. If the rich and powerful act in their self-interest, as conservative ideologues believe we all should do, then the rich and powerful’s share of income will continue to soar.

Second, and more broadly, the real issue is what kind of nation we want to be. Thomas Jefferson’s “All men are created equal” is properly understood as calling for equality of opportunity, not equality of outcomes. But the more we become a nation of rich and poor, the less we can pretend to be offering the same opportunities to every American. As polarization increases, mobility declines. The whole point of the American Dream is that it is available to everyone, not just those who awaken from their slumbers on down-filled pillows and 800-thread-count sheets.

So it does matter that as the pie grows, the various slices do not grow in proportion. We’re not characters in one of those lumbering, interminable, nonsensical Ayn Rand novels. We believe in individual initiative and the free market, but we also believe that nationhood necessarily involves a commitment to our fellow citizens, an acknowledgment that we’re engaged in a common enterprise. We believe that opportunity should be more than just an empty word.

eugenerobinson@washpost.com

The study that shows why Occupy Wall Street struck a nerve – The Washington Post

The GOP’s latest tax gimmickry: Soak the poor – The Washington Post

By E.J. Dionne Jr., Published: October 24

It’s one of the strangest things in our politics: The only “big” ideas Republicans and conservatives seem to offer these days revolve around novel and sometimes bizarre ways of cutting taxes on rich people. …

Republicans have boxed themselves into a rejection of both their own traditions and the idea that government can do any good. Thus they have confined themselves to endless fiddling with the tax code. Almost everything conservatives suggest these days is built around the single idea that if only government took less money away from the wealthy, all our problems would magically disappear. …

Reagan’s optimism has thus been replaced by crabby put-downs of the less affluent. Perry said it directly in his announcement speech: “We’re dismayed at the injustice that nearly half of all Americans don’t even pay any income tax.” Considering the other injustices in our society, this seems an odd and mean-spirited obsession.

“Tax the poor” is a lousy political slogan. That’s why Cain’s 9-9-9 plan and Perry’s flat tax are doomed to fail. Among conservatives, Santa Claus has given way to Scrooge.

The GOP’s latest tax gimmickry: Soak the poor – The Washington Post

But consistent with the long term “Starve the Beast” philosophy.

An Insurance Company With An Army – NYTimes.com by Paul Krugman

[T]his seems like a good time to repeat, once again, the truth about federal spending: Your federal government is basically an insurance company with an army. The vast bulk of its spending goes to the big five: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, defense, and interest on the debt. …

[I]f you want smaller government, either you’re talking about cuts in the big five, or you have no idea what you’re talking about.

An Insurance Company With An Army – NYTimes.com [hat tip NewMexiKen]

America’s ‘Primal Scream’ | NewMexiKen [hat tip]

Three factoids underscore that inequality:

¶The 400 wealthiest Americans have a greater combined net worth than the bottom 150 million Americans.

¶The top 1 percent of Americans possess more wealth than the entire bottom 90 percent.

¶In the Bush expansion from 2002 to 2007, 65 percent of economic gains went to the richest 1 percent. [mjh: “level playing field”? bullshit!]

As my Times colleague Catherine Rampell noted a few days ago, in 1981, the average salary in the securities industry in New York City was twice the average in other private sector jobs. At last count, in 2010, it was 5.5 times as much. (In case you want to gnash your teeth, the average is now $361,330.)

Nicholas D. Kristof

America’s ‘Primal Scream’ | NewMexiKen

How Democrats can use Occupy protests to their advantage – The Washington Post

By Eugene Robinson, Published: October 17

“Defend Wall Street” is not likely to be a winning campaign slogan in 2012. For Republicans, this is an obvious problem. For President Obama and the Democrats, it’s a golden — if largely undeserved — opportunity. …

Enter the Occupy Wall Street protesters with their simple demand for “economic justice” — the right cause at the right moment.

Republicans initially overreacted, as if Karl Marx had risen from the grave. Mitt Romney was so flustered that he almost mussed his hair. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, surveying the small protest encampments in New York and other cities, called them “growing mobs” that threatened public order.

Within a week, however, Cantor was backing away from that “mobs” characterization and acknowledging “a growing frustration out there across this country” about unemployment. I’m guessing he must have seen the Time magazine poll indicating that 54 percent of Americans have a favorable view of the Occupy New York protest — versus just 27 percent who have a favorable view of the Tea Party.

This week’s New Yorker has a laugh-out-loud cover illustration: Top-hatted bankers march down Wall Street, carrying protest signs that say “Keep Things Precisely As They Are,” “Leave Well Enough Alone” and “I’m Good, Thanks.” That’s the danger for Republican candidates. That’s what they risk sounding like.

How Democrats can use Occupy protests to their advantage – The Washington Post

A debt plan that’s going nowhere – The Washington Post

By Ruth Marcus, Published: September 20

As the president discovered, it’s impossible to dance with people determined to stomp on your toes — indeed, with people convinced that stomping on your toes, to the extent they can get away with it, is their route to reelection.

A debt plan that’s going nowhere – The Washington Post

Some of those people would just as soon step on Obama’s neck – or put a noose around it. Some – not all, of course – are very nasty people.

Public sector workers more pro-socially motivated than their private sector counterparts, multi-country study finds

New research has found public sector workers are typically more pro-socially motivated than their private sector counterparts. The University of Bristol study, published Sept. 21, examined motivational indicators in workers from both sectors across 51 countries.

Public sector workers more pro-socially motivated than their private sector counterparts, multi-country study finds

I saw a separate article saying public workers perform their duties for a fraction of the cost of private employees.