Three hundred million Americans can take control of the economy and country
The Roman philosopher and statesman, Marcus Tullius Cicero said: “Freedom is participation in power.” By that standard Americans are not free. We do not participate in power. We do not even have power over our own economic lives, our elected “representatives” ignore us and listen to the moneyed interests sending the United States in the wrong direction on issue after issue. ʻOi aku ka ʻike o ka poʻe ʻAmelika, would govern better and need to participate in power.
When you dispassionately review the reality of the U.S. economy, it is a depressing state of affairs that screams out for Americans to get up, stand up and shout: “we can do better than the political and economic elites.” The opportunity to stand up is here: ʻOkakopa2011.org.
This article focuses on the domestic policies that are destroying the most powerful economy in history, but war spending, which makes up more than half of discretionary federal spending, is one of the root causes of the economic collapse. Nobel Prize-winning economist, Ua kākau ʻo Joseph Stiglitz: "I kēia lā, ke kau nei ʻo ʻAmelika i ka nele i ka hana a me ka hemahema. ʻO nā mea hoʻoweliweli ʻelua i ka wā e hiki mai ana o ʻAmelika hiki ke ʻike ʻia i nā kaua ma Afghanistan a me Iraq. ʻO ia a Ua helu ʻo Linda Bilmes i nā koina kaua o ʻAmelika three years ago conservative at $3 trillion to $5 trillion – these costs have escalated since then.
Domestically the brutal failure of government is evident in the way working Americans are treated. The high levels of unemployment are not the only story; four decades of stagnant incomes and decreasing share of the gross domestic product going to workers are long-term trends; the fragility of peoples’ personal finances, record foreclosure, high student debt and the lack of control over our economic lives all show the need for an economic transformation to a new, democratized economy.
Ke piʻi mau nei ka nele i ka hana. ʻOkoke 31% o nā limahana US ʻike i ka hana ʻole a i ʻole ka hana ʻole i kekahi manawa in 2009. President Obama has never put forth a real jobs program instead preferring to tinker with corporate tax breaks – a proven hoʻonā ʻole i kēia manawa ka hopena ʻaʻohe ulu hana. ʻO ka hoʻohaʻahaʻa loa i ka nele i ka hana ʻole because it has been used as a political tool and has been changed over the years, e.g. in 1994 the government stopped counting discouraged workers who have given up looking for employment. At a time when an kiʻekiʻe kiʻekiʻe number of Americans are “not in the labor force” this manipulation of data has a dramatic impact. An apolitical analysis of unemployment, that counts the total number of people in need of employment, results in a current unemployment rate of 22.5%, an mooolelo manawa a pau total of 34 million people are currently in need of work.
Nui nā hiʻohiʻona o ke kiʻekiʻe o ka nele i ka hana, ka liʻiliʻi o ka hana a me ka haʻalele ʻana o ka poʻe mai ka mākeke hana, akā ʻo kahi mea i loaʻa i koʻu manaʻo i kēia manawa he hōʻike mai. ka Bureau of Labor Statistics, reporting that an astounding 51% of youth are unemployed:
“In July, the employment-population ratio for youth—the proportion of the 16- to 24-year old civilian noninstitutional population that was employed—was 48.8 percent, a record low for the series… (The month of July typically is the summertime peak in youth employment.)”
Fifty-one percent of youth unemployed and even more underemployed is a very dangerous situation for the future workforce as it comes at a time when students are leaving school in nui ka aie than ever before. A recent hōʻike ʻia e Moody's Analytics loaa moolelo ʻaiʻē e nā haumāna kulanui ka poe e puka ana me ka hana ole. Ma kahi hoʻokele waiwai i loaʻa i ka poʻe ka mana e ʻike mākou i ka hoʻonaʻauao kula manuahi ma mua o ka ʻoki ʻana i nā Pell Grants a me ka piʻi wikiwiki ʻana o nā haʻawina ma nā kula mokuʻāina.
In he hoike no ka la hana, the Economic Policy Institute demonstrates that unemployment leaves long-term scars on families and communities. The pain caused by persistently high unemployment is not limited to workers who are currently unemployed but extends to the broader workforce and the country in general through lost wages, income and wealth, as well as higher poverty.
E like me kekahi laʻana o nā mea he nui, ma Kaleponi hoʻokahi o ʻehā ʻohana i pilikia i ka hānai ʻana i kā lākou mau keiki, indeed 68.6% of students in schools in Fresno County and 65.6% in Los Angeles County were eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals in 2010. Nationwide, the Kula National Academy of Sciences ua hoʻopuka i kahi hōʻike i pau 52,765,000 Americans, 17.3% of the population, lived in poverty in 2009. And, for children, census data shows a total of 15.5 miliona American children lived in poverty in 2009 – 20% of all children. According to a 2011 hōʻike mai ka Pūnaehana Palekana o nā Keiki, "i kēlā me kēia lā ma ʻAmelika 2,573 pēpē ua hānau ʻia i loko o ka ʻilihune. Ua piʻi aʻe kēia mau pae ʻilihune a pau i nā makahiki ʻelua i hala mai ka hōʻike Helu Helu, no laila ua hoʻohaʻahaʻa ʻia lākou.
ʻO ka hāʻule ʻana o ka hoʻokele waiwai i hopena i ka awelika o ka waiwai o ka ʻohana US ke emi nei e 28%. This represents a loss of $27,000 per household – in households e emi ana ke kālā i kēia lā ma mua o ka makahiki 1971. Currently, at least 62 million Americans, 20% o nā ʻohana US, ʻaʻohe a i ʻole ka waiwai ʻupena maikaʻi ʻole. ʻOiaʻiʻo, ka hapa nui, a i ʻole 64%, of Americans don’t have enough cash ma ka lima e mālama i kahi $ 1,000 koina pilikia, e like me ka National Foundation for Credit Counseling.
ʻO ʻAukake 2011 hōʻike e ka National Employment Law Project concludes jobs created since the recession officially ended are reducing worker income: 73% of the jobs created since the supposed recovery began have been low-wage jobs, where workers make between $7.51 (the national minimum wage) and $13.52 an hour ($15,621 to $28,122 a year for full-time). In contrast, 60% of the layoffs were in mid-wage jobs that made between $28,142 and $42,973 per year.
ʻO kahi noʻonoʻo koʻikoʻi i ka lā Labor: ke ʻike nei mākou ka make o ka papa waena? Are we in what Marx described as the self-destruction of finance-dominated advanced Capitalism? Labor’s share of the gross domestic product has shrunk while the profits for capital have risen. The investor class knows their wealth comes from reducing the cost of labor. JPMorgan recently told their investors: "ʻO ka uku hana US i kēia manawa ma kahi haʻahaʻa haʻahaʻa he 50 mau makahiki e pili ana i nā kūʻai ʻoihana ʻelua a me US GDP. . . reductions in wages and benefits explain the majority of the net improvement in margins.” Indeed, according to JPMorgan, 75% of the increase in profit margins directly correlates with the reduction in workers’ wages.
ʻO ka makemake i ka loaʻa kālā pōkole ke hoʻokumu nei i ka emi ʻana o ka hoʻokele waiwai no ka mea ʻaʻole hiki i ka hana ke ʻai i ka lawa a ʻaiʻē paha e mālama i ka hoʻokele waiwai me kāna kālā a me ka hoʻohana ʻana i ka hōʻaiʻē. E like me David Cay Johnston "ʻAʻole hiki i kahi kumu nāwaliwali ke kākoʻo pono i kahi superstructure nui."
ʻO nā hōʻike hou aʻe o kēia pae kiʻekiʻe o ke kālā-kapita ma kēlā ʻaoʻao o ka hoʻohālikelike, ʻo ka ʻike o ka waiwai. ʻO ka kanaka waiwai loa 400 in the U.S. have as much wealth as 154 million Americans or 50% of the population. The wealthiest 1% of the U.S. population now has a record 40% of all wealth - more wealth than 90% o ka heluna kanaka. Wahi a kahi noiʻi nui e ka loiloi a me ka ʻoihana aʻoaʻo kālā Deloitte, Ua loaʻa i nā ʻohana miliona miliona o ʻAmelika $ 38.6 trillion i ka waiwai hoʻohui i kahi i manaʻo ʻia $ 6.3 trillion huna ʻia ma nā moʻolelo o waho.
ʻO 74 wale nō ʻAmelika i loko o kēia elite top bracket, ʻo ka poʻe me ka loaʻa kālā makahiki he $ 50 miliona a ʻoi aku paha. ʻO ka awelika loaʻa kālā i loko o kēia māhele $ 91.2 miliona i ka makahiki 2008. Me he mea kupanaha la, i ka makahiki 2009 ua awelika $ 518.8 miliona each, or about $10 million per week. This means, in the depths of the economic collapse, the richest 74 Americans increased their income by more than 5 times in one year. These 74 people made more money than 19 miliona huiia na limahana.
Indeed, during the recession, ua mahuahua ka poe waiwai oiai ke koena o kakou e ilihune ana. I ka makahiki 2009 wale nō, ʻo ka uku o ka poʻe ʻoi loa o ʻAmelika quintupled, ʻoiai ʻoi aku ka nui o nā ʻAmelika loaʻa iā lākou iho ma nā hōʻailona meaʻai ma mua o ka wā ma mua. CEOs got a 23% raise last year a ʻo ka loaʻa ʻana o nā waiwai ʻoihana i nā kiʻekiʻe kiʻekiʻe aʻo ka uku liʻiliʻi he liʻiliʻi ka mana kūʻai i kēia manawa ma mua o ka makahiki 1956.
Inā mākou e noho ma ka papa o kēia manawa, ka wealth amassed by millionaire households is set to increase by more than 100% over the next 9 years. From a total of $92 trillion held by the world’s richest in 2011, by 2020 the world’s millionaire households will possess $202 trillion, or roughly 4 times current global GDP. If you think the wealth divide is bad now, unless significant changes are made, it is going to get much worse.
ʻOi aku ka waiwai o ka poʻe waiwai a ʻo ka poʻe ʻilihune e ʻilihune a nalowale ka papa waena, ʻaʻole no ka mea ʻoi aku ka naʻauao o ka poʻe waiwai a ʻoi aku ka ikaika o ka hana, akā ma muli o ke kapena crony corrupt. ʻO ka Ua hana ka poe waiwai e hoomalu i ke aupuni since the early 1970s. President Obama’s $1 billion re-election campaign exemplifies this. He is holding fundraisers where he uku $35,800 no ke komo ʻana – that is more than the median income of American workers. The twelve members appointed to the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction ua loaʻa ma kahi o $64.5 miliona i nā haʻawina from special interest groups over the past decade, with legal firms donating about $31.5 million and Wall Street firms donating about $11.2 million. And since they were appointed to the commission, they have been e ʻimi ana i nā haʻawina mai Wall Street.
Ma muli o kēia kipe i hoʻokaʻawale ʻia ma ke ʻano he mau haʻawina hoʻolaha, ua kuhi ʻia nā kulekele no ka poʻe waiwai loa, kekahi mau hiʻohiʻona i waena o nā mea he nui:
- NāʻAmelikaʻo 1,470 loaʻa ma luna o $1 miliona ma 2009 a ʻaʻole i uku i kekahi ʻauhau.
- Historically the U.S. had an ʻauhau waiwai nui ma ka waiwai nui i ka wā hoʻokele waiwai, i kēia manawa ke kamaʻilio nei ka poʻe kālai'āina e pili ana i ka hoʻohaʻahaʻa ʻana i ka uku ma nā ʻauhau ʻauhau kiʻekiʻe.
- ka kaumaha ʻauhau ma luna o ka poʻe waiwai nui he haʻahaʻa kūpono ʻole. Helu helu IRS released this May reflect that in 2008, the most recent year for which statistics are available, the tax rate is 18.1% on the wealthiest 400 Americans, while someone who has a net taxable income of $60,000 after deductions and exemptions pays 25%.
- Warren Buffet describes paying only 17.4% income tax because of policies that e hooluolu i ka poe waiwai, “If you make money with money, as some of my super-rich friends do, your percentage may be a bit lower than mine. But if you earn money from a job, your percentage will surely exceed mine — most likely by a lot.”
- Many major ʻAʻole ʻauhau nā hui, ʻoiaʻiʻo, nui ka poʻe i loaʻa i nā ʻauhau ʻauhau nui, ʻoiai ka loaʻa kālā.
- Ua hāʻule mau ka ʻauhau ʻoihana mai ka makahiki 1950, me ka nui aʻe o ke kaumaha e hāʻule ana i nā ʻoihana liʻiliʻi.
- ka SEC has been covering up nā hewa o Wall Street ma ka luku ʻana i nā hōʻike.
- ka Nā panakō hōʻaiʻē Federal Reserve and other companies as much as $1.2 trillion of public money at very low-interest rates.
It doesn’t have to be this way. The 1% wealthiest should not have more political power than 300 million people. The people have the answers – if the manaʻo o ʻAmelika were followed the country would be on the right track on many critical issues. We can hoʻomokalaka i ka hoʻokele waiwai a hāʻawi i ka poʻe i ka mana hou aʻe i ko lākou ola ponoʻī a me ka mana ma luna o ka hoʻokele waiwai. Akā, ʻo ke kuleana o ka poʻe ke koi aku i ka poʻe kālaiʻāina e hoʻolohe iā lākou.
The traditional tools of elections and lobbying no longer work. Americans need to build an independent movement and independent media along with independent politics to challenge the deep corruption in American government caused by corporatism. That starts on October 6, 2011, i ka wā e hele mai ai nā ʻAmelika i Wakinekona, DC a noho i ka Freedom Plaza e kāhea i ka hoʻopau ʻana i ka corporatism a me ka militarism.
The destruction of the economy for 98% of Americans has been a long-term trend that the people can turn around – you can be sure the government will not do so. It is up to us. On this Labor Day Americans need to look honestly and deeply into the corruption of government by economic and political elites and koi mākou e komo i ka mana.
This article was originally published in 2011 in the build-up to Occupy Washington DC.
Ke alakaʻi pū nei ʻo Kevin Zeese ʻO kā mākou Kūʻai a aia ma ke komite hookele o ʻOkakopa2011.org. Zeese now co-directs Popular Resistance which evolved from the Occupy Movement.
Hāʻawi kālā ʻia ʻo ZNetwork ma o ka lokomaikaʻi o kāna poʻe heluhelu.
E Makana mai