"America Embraces Class Warfare"

[Sasha]

America Embraces Class Warfare

http://slate-static-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/etc/designs/slate/images/facebook-share.032f05b5.png (https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2014/01/23/pew_and_usa_today_find_that_americans_love_class_w arfare.html)
(http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2014/01/23/pew_and_usa_today_find_that_americans_love_class_w arfare.html#)

By Matthew Yglesias (http://www.slate.com/authors.matthew_yglesias.html)
http://www.slate.com/content/dam/slate/blogs/moneybox/2014/01/23/pew_and_usa_today_find_that_americans_love_class_w arfare/180911674-an-occupy-wall-street-protester-participates-in-a-march.jpg.CROP.promo-mediumlarge.jpg Most people agree with this guy; they just don't like the hat.
Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Some interesting new polling from USA Today and Pew on income inequality finds that the American public broadly endorses class warfare (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/23/pew-poll-obama-wealth-gap-sotu/4777385/):

http://www.slate.com/content/dam/slate/blogs/moneybox/2014/01/classwarfare2.png.CROP.original-original.png
The danger for liberals to keep in mind is that voters are less persuaded that the government can do something useful to reduce inequality than they are that the government should do something useful. People are accustomed to the idea of a mass public that's "ideologically conservative and operationally liberal"; in other words one that hates "big government" but loves programs such as Medicare and Social Security. On inequality you could see the reverse happen, where people favor bold action to tackle inequality but are skeptical that specific programmatic ideas are workable or will be implemented correctly.


But on a broad thematic level, people definitely seem ready to spread the wealth around and I agree (http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2014/01/inequality_and_innovation_if_nobody_can_afford_new _products_who_will_make.html).




Matthew Yglesias is Slate's business and economics correspondent. He is the author of The Rent Is Too Damn High (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0078XGJXO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=slatmaga-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0078XGJXO).


source: http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2014/01/23/pew_and_usa_today_find_that_americans_love_class_w arfare.html

[The Garbage Disposal Unit]

Interestingly, I think the disparity between "should" and "can" reflects a movement of consciousness beyond popular so-called "liberalism" toward class consciousness. Certainly, I think declining faith in the ability of the bourgeois state to carry out meaningful reforms is a potentially positive development, insofar as it could point to potential for developing a politics outside of and against the state aimed at winning reforms with popular class activity.

I mean, that or people are just becoming increasingly resigned and defeatist. Meh.

[Comrade Jacob]

I wonder out of the 43% that said 'a lot' how many would have said 'no wealth gap' if it was an option.