Rosen: Populists equalize poverty

Rocky Mountain News ^ | 19 January 2007 | Mike Rosen

[A.A. Cunningham]

Rosen: Populists equalize poverty
January 19, 2007

With the Democrats back in power in Congress and with the 2008 election campaign already upon us, you'll be hearing much more about "income inequality." This is a major issue for "progressives" (when you hear that word, think "socialists") like Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Populism is back in fashion.

By populism, I mean the exploitation of the uninformed, angry impulses and unfiltered passions of the masses. That anger and resentment has historically been directed at the usual villains and cardboard stereotypes: bankers, insurance companies, "big pharma" (that means drug companies), agri-business, "the military-industrial complex," free trade, free markets and, of course, "the rich." This mentality feeds on conspiracy theories and simplistic fantasies about the way the world works. It seeks to impale the minority of "haves" on the pitchforks of the more numerous "have nots." When you do the political calculus, it can seem like a seductive winning formula for many politicians.

[A.A. Cunningham]

Mike Rosen's radio show airs daily from 9 a.m. to noon on 850 KOA. He can be reached by e-mail at mikerosen@850koa.com.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Great article.

[Jaysun]

Excessive concentration of income and wealth can destroy a society politically. We're nowhere near that point. Excessive redistribution of income and wealth - without regard for talent and productivity - can destroy a society economically. That's the more tangible danger.

Right on. Unfortunately, an enormous amount of people believe the "income gap" nonsense and don't see such rhetoric for what it is.

[muawiyah]

The term "Progressive" always means "Closet Stalinist", not just your garden variety "Socialist".

Notice that one of her first legislative initiatives is to increase the cost of extracting American oil thereby driving up the price on people who own automobiles.

Reminds me a lot of the Khmer Rouge bashing the skulls of people who wore glasses.

[lndrvr1972]

And killing all doctors.

[gas0linealley]

Individual incomes are determined objectively in the marketplace. When politicians or labor unions don't like the results, they meddle in people's lives and businesses in pursuit of power while invoking the name of "social justice," today's name for egalitarianism.

There was a recent article here, describing how a number of Southeastern municipalities are bidding for a new Google facility. They are offering, among other things, tax breaks in the 100 million dollar range. The article pointed out that Google is an enormous business. IMO,the small taxpayers, in the community that gets the nod, are going to get screwed. And, of course, we know that isn't an isolated instance, but is repeated over and over in the US today. Mr. Rosen is as biased as they come.

[Dumb_Ox]

By populism, I mean the exploitation of the uninformed, angry impulses and unfiltered passions of the masses.

When has that ever been out of fashion?

I don't understand the disdain for populism shown by opinionators everywhere. Populism is a necessary corrective when governmental policies become too identical to the interests of the ruling elites, whether cultural, economic, or political. It's an ordinary phenomenon of representative government.

Rosen's piece reminds me of those who deny privilege. By denying the existence or legitimacy of privilege, we are freed from the burden of exploring and explaining how privilege can be responsibly used. So, too, there is such a thing as responsible populism.

[dcwusmc]

Bump for later reading.