We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Saturday, November 17, 2012

The Casino Economy Harms Needed Public Services

Click here to access article by Lisa Lindsley from Policy Shop.

This liberal author makes some very good points, but fails to understand that what we are currently witnessing is the natural endgame of capitalism.
Among the casualties of the financial crisis are the workers who haul your garbage, drive your kids to school, provide emergency services, deliver health care, operate libraries, protect your family’s water supply, and more.  This segment of the US workforce has lost 605,000 jobs since 2008.  In addition, over half a million new public sector workers should have been added to keep pace with population growth since 2009.  The combined effect of layoffs and failure to hire is that over a million public service workers are missing and unable to provide these critical services.
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