“The Oxfam report An Economy for the 1%, shows that the wealth of the poorest half of the world’s population has fallen by a trillion dollars since 2010, a drop of 38 percent. This has occurred despite the global population increasing by around 400 million people during that period. Meanwhile, the wealth of the richest 62 has increased by more than half a trillion dollars to $1.76tr. The report also shows how women are disproportionately affected by inequality – of the current ‘62’, 53 are men and just nine are women.” https://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressreleases/2016-01-18/62-people-own-same-half-world-reveals-oxfam-davos-report
This is the opening paragraph describing Oxfam’s newest report on inequality released for the DAVOS meetings . It is this performance by the global capitalist economy that fuels the unrest that is opening the door to the politics of lies, fear, hatred, violence and revenge. Elders are told their pensions are no longer secure and there will soon be too many of them to care for. Young people are told to forget stable careers, having pensions and benefits, paying off huge student loans or owning a home. Parents see a bleak future for their children and grandchildren. This is not the output of a functional economy but a faltering one.
Is this the climate that could allow millions of good people who are desperate for change to be manipulated by the politics of lies, fear, hatred, violence and revenge to vote for a billionaire who does not pay taxes, cannot seem to tell the truth and who is a self-confessed sexual predator? Is this what causes angry and bewildered people to elect a leader who will cut government services, lower taxes on corporations and the rich, and allow destruction of the environment their grandchildren will inherit?
From Corporate Globalization to Global Co-operation suggests an alternative. There are practical steps young people and elders can take. Many people took steps to shift to an alternative during the Standing Rock demonstrations in North Dakota. More about that in a later post. In the meantime read the Oxfam’s report, An Economy for the 1%. Then think about how we can create a new economy individually and in groups.
Global Co-operation 