There’s been a great deal in the news about community organizers. Our country has a long history of community organizers. In fact, some of the most radical ones in our history were from the late 1700s. These radicals included John Hancock, John Adams, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and many, many others.
These men were filled with radical ideas. They saw a vision of the colonies becoming united states with a common theme that all men were created equal with unalienable rights and that laws should not be unfair.
One of their biggest beefs was unjust taxes. Under President Bush the following occurred after
President Bush cut taxes:The poverty rate in 2008 rose to 13.2 percent, the highest in 11 years, while median household income fell to $50,303. Ten years earlier, adjusted for inflation, it was $51,295.
Of course this reflects the ravages of a horrid recession. But the decline started before the collapse in the housing and financial sectors — and it was calculated, in the eyes of some.
Harvard economist Lawrence Katz called it “a plutocratic boom.” If anything comes close to defining the era, that would be my nomination. President Bush cut $1.3 trillion in taxes — and the biggest beneficiaries by far were the top 1 percent of earners. At the same time, Wall Street was inflated by the helium of a regulation-free economy that eventually gave us Bernie Madoff and banks begging for bailouts.
One of the biggest arguments for cutting taxes is that it will help spur the economy. We did not see that happen. Instead, we saw a decline in income for the majority of Americans.
Now consider the people who showed up in a state of generalized rage in Washington over the weekend. They have no leaders, save a self-described rodeo clown — Glenn Beck of Fox News — and some well-funded Astroturf outfits from the permanent lobbying class inside the Beltway. They are loosely organized under a Tea Party movement, but these people are closer to British Tories than 18th century patriots with a love of equality.
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