Not so Subtle

First, I’d better define exactly who a market populist is, before I get 1800 e-mails accusing me of Marxist sorcery.

Mar-ket Pop-u-list: noun

One who embraces the economic philosophy of the free market, globalisation, and free trade with a religious furvor. Market populists must show absolute loyalty to the whims of the almighty deity that is the free market at all times. Customs of the faith include: daily devotion and reflection on the sacred texts of the New York Times and the Wall Street Jounal, kneeling in prayer twice a day in the general direction of the NYSE at 9:30 AM EST, and at 4:00 PM EST, and denouncing heretics who do not share the faith whenever they are met.

Market populists may also exhibit symptoms of blindness, and have a tendency to experience bouts of tone-defness, especially when confronted with evidence that free trade may not be beneficial for 3rd world countries, the American middle class, or non CEOs.

The high priests of Market Populism can be found in editorial boards across the nation, as well as in all levels of state and national government. Their words are to be given the highest regard and at no point should any tone less than absolute reverence be shown towards them.

Heretics such as Thomas Frank, Dennis Kucinich, and Gore Vidal should be villified at the very least, and if possible, brought to justice dead or alive.

…

Before we became obsessed with the idea that markets dictate the success of nations and people, we had a decent thing going. During the post World War 2 boom, the American people experienced an unprecedented success, and the middle class was created. This was not a natural phenomenon. Rather, the creation of the middle class was the result of progressive tax policies, strong labor unions, and heavy regulation from a state still wary from the Depression.

Somewhere along the line we decided that unions had become too powerful, corporations should have the same rights (and even more) than human beings, and that the very idea of regulating the economy was undemocratic and unnatural.

And now we stand where we are today. The gap between the rich and the poor is greater than it has been at any time since surfdom, our natural resources have been pushed to the limit, and any whisper that free trade may be responsible is stamped out by a chorus of a thousand angry new economists in less than an instant. As a whole, we have embraced the free market as more than an economic policy, but as a cultural movement, even as a religion. Proponents of free trade will often support policies that they know absolutely nothing about other than the fact that the title includes the words “free trade” in them.

The only consideration that matters for the market populist is profit.

Should you want a company to stop outsourcing its jobs to 3rd world countries that have sparing, if any labor laws to protect American jobs, they will cry foul because you will be interfering with that company’s unalienable right to profit.

Should you ask a corporation to pay its employees a living wage so that they don’t have to use credit to pay for gas and groceries, they will cry foul because the corporation will then be forced to cut jobs or raise prices.

Nothing can interfere with the will of the free market, and the free market has only one note to play. Freedom.

They have so twisted this notion that market populists believe deregulation is as essential to liberty as the right to vote.

They are so convinced that free trade is good for everyone involved that opponents are accused of wanting to keep the poor poorer.

Some market populists don’t understand what it is all about. They support the policy because it’s a vague, positive notion akin to bringing the world together through trade, while being woefully ignorant of the pain it causes to all but a handful of people.

Other market populists get it, and they just don’t care.

You would think that the housing crisis and the credit crunch would be enough to convince some of these true believers that letting the market regulate itself isn’t the greatest idea, but they’re simply not listening.

The market is not an inherently positive force. It must be directed towards improving the standard of living for the entire country, otherwise it is useful only as a reinforcement of the law of the jungle.

The market is not God. The market is not an equalizer. The market does not have a will or a consciousness or a soul. If you insist on worshipping this economic policy with a zest that would put Jihadists to shame, then don’t be surprised if you find yourself in the 6th level of hell some day.

I really would love to list a full 365 ways to bury your head in the sand, or up your ass, but I don’t have that much time. Instead, I will explore the 3 most common and politically infamous ways of ignoring reality or lacking any grasp on the way things work here in this country.

1. Be a conservative who supports the free market but wants a border fence. These two ideas are about as incompatible as it gets. Opening up the market means opening up borders to anyone who wants to participate in the global economy; and the global economy depends on the cheap labor that immigrants provide, especially here in the States. The same people who talk about big government interfering with hard-working Americans generally use the same tone of disdain when talking about Mexicans who come up here and take away (white) Americans’ jobs. I’m sorry folks, but you just can’t have it both ways. The free market ensures that labor costs and immigration policies will be linked.

Today thousands of immigrants and their families and friends are marching through Chicago and other cities, because they want to participate in this great American experiment of democratic voting and markets. Are you going to deny them that? Well, you can’t anyway. A border fence cannot stop the flow of immigrants into this country anymore than it can stop the thousands of tons of drugs that come across as well. You’re just going to have to accept the notion that you won’t be fulfilling your life-long dream of being a bus-boy. The Mexicans have just as much of a right to be here as the Jews, Asians, Irish, and Germans that came before them. They’re not going away. Just accept it.

2. Believe that the surge is really working. I myself have fallen into this fallacy. But a temporary decrease in spectacular attacks do not prove that the strategy can work. There is no way that the surge can work. And for the inevitable idiot claims that I am somehow disrespecting the troops by saying this, I have no reason to even answer you, but the fact is that the surge is yet another impossible burden that has been placed on our troops. The reason I was opposed to this war from the beginning is because I support the troops who fight it. End of story.

The reason that the surge cannot work is because, just like the entire Iraqi mission, it is a flawed idea to begin with. Democracy cannot be forced upon people with a gun anymore than political reconciliation can be achieved through massive troop buildups. The violence has lessened since the surge began, but that’s not the question here. Without a permanent, comprehensive solution that is worked out by the IRAQIS there will be no end to this war. To expect the American soldier to keep carrying that burden while the corrupt, inept, illegitimate Iraqi government works towards “peace” is the true meaning of not supporting the troops. And for those of you who claim that we just need to give them more time, let me remind you that 5 years ago today, our President stood on the deck of a naval vessel in front of a giant banner that read “Mission Accomplished.” Don’t believe it for a second; then or now.

3. Believing that Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, or John Mccain will truly change things. The very fact that these 3 candidates have come as far as they have proves that their interests lie with the wealthy elite, not with the average American. For all his talk of campaign finance reform, John Mccain has taken millions from PAC’s and corporations and hasn’t apologized for it. Barack Obama claims that he has stayed away from this dirty money but it’s only a twisting of terms; the truth is that he has taken far more money from corporate America than any other candidate. Hillary Clinton is about as entrenched in the Washington power structure as you can get, and all her talk about health care is hallow as hell; in 1994 she may have really meant it, but since she has taken millions of dollars from the insurance and pharmaceutical industries.

For hundreds of years people have been running on the platform of change and hope, and very very few of them have actually followed through. In order to affect any real change in America, we need to change the way campaigns are funded, and stop voting for a pack of bloated elephants and jackasses.