From Mary at The Left Coaster here.
Both Kevin Drum and Matt Yglesias commented on Niall Ferguson's contention that the go-go years since Reagan was elected should be given credit for the growth in GDP up to the Bush debacle. Matt provided this chart to show how little the average American saw of this growth. [Click on graph to enlarge.]
But I think what is even more telling than the fact that the income stagnated for most of the country, is that this picture doesn't show how over that time Americans experienced a serious erosion in their ability to buy things that matter. The cost of housing, health care, and education have all sky-rocketed while the loss of time and the increase in debt combined with a fraying safety net have severely diminished the quality of life for most people. Maybe all that financial innovation wasn't so grand.
Unfortunately, the American people have apparently been dumb enough to let this happen by the way they've voted (not me!). Maybe they're wising up.
Vote for your own self-interest, people! Don't fool yourselves. You've been systematically turned into an underclass. Don't let your bigotry get in the way of your own self-interest (which the Republicans have been exploiting in you for years, obviously to your financial detriment).
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