American democracy and American-style capitalism have created a standard of living that most nations can only dream about. Now some of our bedrock political and economic beliefs are in question. Working families are swept by insecurity. They work longer hours, get second jobs, go into debt and yet fall further and further behind. Not these days.
Productivity is up.
The stock market has set more than 80 records in the past year. But workers are getting creamed. Corporations are averaging more than 8,200 layoffs every day, and wages of the survivors have gone up less than three percent. Since 1980, Corporate America has downsized, right-sized, fired, bumped or dumped 43 million men and women. For the survivors, their paychecks buy less than they did 20 years ago.