Jim D: > CB: All presidents are oligarchs' presidents.
right. But as Shane suggests, this hardly justifies voting for or supporting BHO. ^^^^^^^ CB: Since this is a given in the system as it has always existed, it also hardly rationalizes not voting for or not supporting BHO either. It is a basis for dwelling in Never-Never land politics. It's a redherring, a trivial truism. ^^^^^^^ >> When Barack Obama was elected, he had an unprecedented opportunity >> to shape American history by bringing the country's new financial >> oligarchy under control. > CB: Bullshit. Yes and no. It's true that BHO could never get the financial oligarchs under the control of the working classes. But I think Ferguson is talking about something different: using regulations, BHO could have gotten them to look to the long-term health of the financial sector as a whole (rather than the special interests of the individual oligarchs). ^^^^^ CB: How could BHO have gotten them ( who is them ? the Senate ? ) to look to the long-term health of the financial sector as a whole ? The financial sector's long term health looks fine. They got bailed out. Why wouldn't they be bailed out next time there is a threat of system failure ? ^^^^^ The Big Lost Chance occurred in 2008, when the bail-out could have been combined with putting the bailed-out institutions under conservatorship -- or simply insisting on being paid for loans with corporate equity (stock). (Call it "nationalization," if you will, but it wouldn't be socialism.) ^^^^^ CB: Not with Congress with the current sum of Republicans + Rightwing Democrats. As a comrade said to me the 2008 elections did not constitute a compelling mandate for far reaching change nor were the necessary forces were present to make such a election mandate. ^^^^^^^ This would have allowed serious re-regulation, which in turn helps capitalism run better. Those of us who are stuck in the belly of the beast would thus do better also, at least for a while. (There are other forces besides the financial mess behind immiseration.) Maybe more could avoid poverty. ^^^^^ CB: My sense is the dominant opinion in the ruling class is not that serious re-regulation would help capitalism run better. As far as they are concerned capitalism is running fine. Profits are in recovery and unemployment is high ( fish are jumpin and the cotton is high; Daddy's rich) ^^^^ If we're smart, we could use the respite to pressure BHO and other political oligarchs to do a better job and maybe (hope, hope) move toward socialism. As I've said before, the impetus for this move comes from outside the economic and political oligarchy, i.e., from below. We can't expect anything from the oligarchs. ^^^^ CB: I don't see how the oligarchs would not consider that they are doing a bangup job. _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
