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Your last paragraph pretty much sums it up for the US. The primary objective of the US government for its people should be to provide everyone with the same ba

Your last paragraph pretty much sums it up for the US. The primary objective of the US government for its people should be to provide everyone with the same basic opportunities. What they do with those opportunities is up to them, like it is in any other country which already does these things. Access to education and universal healthcare + a livable minimum wage at the very least. Once your children are fed, happy and healthy and you don't have to work 2 jobs to make ends meet, you have more time to spend with your kids and provide them with an upbringing which will allow them to have a fair chance at becoming one of the people who make those decisions. There's obviously a major influence on US democracy coming from the decision makers of the "economy". So the question is, which is more important, and to whom? The majority doesn't have much of a say in the economy unless they band together, which is nearly impossible in a diverse and (intentionally) divided US. A flawed democracy also means that the kind of drastic change that's needed to correct this imbalance can't happen.

nobody9999 5y ago
>The primary objective of the US government for its people should be to provide everyone with the same basic opportunities. What they do with those opportunities is up to them, like it is in any other country which already does these things. >Access to education and universal healthcare + a livable minimum wage at the very least. I'd add that doing so is also smart economic policy and is good for capitalism. By expanding the pool of folks who are decently paid and educated, we expand consumer spending (which is ~70% of the US economy) and the skilled labor pool. Both of those will encourage the broader pool of healthier, better educated people to engage in entrepreneurship, growing and stabilizing the economy over the medium to long term. And even with such spreading the wealth, the top 10% will still be plenty wealthy. It's a win-win, IMHO. tl;dr: There are compelling economic/capitalistic reasons to increase wage floors, enhance the social safety net, improve edudcation and generally spread the wealth around, not just those around societal good.
- imtringued 5y ago
  The surprising part (maybe it is not very surprising) is that economic elites advocate for policies that are bad for economic growth in the long run. It's surprising because the policies that will result in economic growth are quite obvious. It's unsurprising because those who are in power don't want to give it up for the greater good.

nobody9999 5y ago

>The primary objective of the US government for its people should be to provide everyone with the same basic opportunities. What they do with those opportunities is up to them, like it is in any other country which already does these things. >Access to education and universal healthcare + a livable minimum wage at the very least. I'd add that doing so is also smart economic policy and is good for capitalism. By expanding the pool of folks who are decently paid and educated, we expand consumer spending (which is ~70% of the US economy) and the skilled labor pool. Both of those will encourage the broader pool of healthier, better educated people to engage in entrepreneurship, growing and stabilizing the economy over the medium to long term. And even with such spreading the wealth, the top 10% will still be plenty wealthy. It's a win-win, IMHO. tl;dr: There are compelling economic/capitalistic reasons to increase wage floors, enhance the social safety net, improve edudcation and generally spread the wealth around, not just those around societal good.

imtringued 5y ago
The surprising part (maybe it is not very surprising) is that economic elites advocate for policies that are bad for economic growth in the long run. It's surprising because the policies that will result in economic growth are quite obvious. It's unsurprising because those who are in power don't want to give it up for the greater good.