Bob Herbert wrote an excellent column for the New York Times today (Oct. 7). The title is "A Fool's Paradise". Link here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/07/opinion/07herbert.htm...Mr. Herbert's subject is the economic travail of the middle class. He cites a few statistics to make the point that middle class incomes have stagnated, especially in recent years. He makes two related observations: 1) middle class Americans have compensated for lagging incomes by rapidly taking on more debt and 2) the rich have had the opposite experience- a rapid increase in income. Mr. Herbert suggests that this is what this election should be about and I wholeheartedly agree.
The media, meanwhile, has touted this election as historic because for the first time a black candidate has been nominated and may be elected. Likewise, if McCain is elected he would be the oldest man elected to the office and his running mate would be the first woman Vice President. These superficial characteristics of the candidates may have a Guiness World Book of Records appeal but are otherwise trivial.
The much larger question is whether America will continue to be a predominantly middle class society. The trajectory of the Bush years has been the stripping of wealth, power, and security from all but the elite. The losses of the middle class have turned into prodigious gains for the wealthy and powerful few. This election is about reversing this trend or confirming and accelerating it as we hurtle toward a future society which resembles nothing so much as the feudal systems that our ancestors overturned.
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