E-Mail
Print
Behind tried and true slogans such as "United We Stand" and "American Exceptionalism," many have tried to obscure the fault lines in American society and distract attention away from the undemocratic structures of wealth and power.
Over half of Americans are now officially either "poor" or "low-income." The Census Bureau says they total 146.4 million, or 48 percent of the population. Children are the most likely to live in poor families, followed by those over 65. "Low-income" means earning less than twice the poverty line. The bottom 20 percent of families have earned steadily less since 1979, while paychecks for the top 5 percent of families climbed 64 percent. Is this exceptional unity?
As billionaire Warren Buffet remarked in 2006, "There's class warfare, all right, but it's my class, the rich class, that's making war, and we're winning."
