Monday, August 22, 2011

Robert Reich on the American Economy



I'm not an economist nor will I claim to know much about the economy (but I'm learning), however, I found this 2 minute video very interesting.

It would appear that Warren Buffett might agree with at least some of what Reich has to say. Buffett wrote in the New York Times:
My friends and I have been coddled long enough by a billionaire-friendly Congress. It’s time for our government to get serious about shared sacrifice.
I am currently reading Reich's book Aftershock. Here's a synopsis from it's back cover:
When the nation’s economy foundered in 2008, blame was directed almost universally at Wall Street bankers. But Robert B. Reich, one of our most experienced and trusted voices on public policy, suggests another reason for the meltdown. Our real problem, he argues, lies in the increasing concentration of wealth in the hands of the richest Americans, while stagnant wages and rising costs have forced the middle class to go deep into debt. Reich’s thoughtful and detailed account of where we are headed over the next decades—and how we can fix our economic system—is a practical, humane, and much-needed blueprint for restoring America’s economy and rebuilding our society.



4 comments:

  1. Hmmmm. Robert Reich and Warren Buffett for some reason think the government can do a better job with rich people's money, than rich people can do with it. Since the US government has since the 60's not done much of anything good with taxpayer's money (public education being only one of many glaring examples), I think we should focus instead on dramatically reducing the size of the Federal government. A good place to start is the Dept of Education. This is an unconstitutional body, and public education should be handled by states -- states the size of Finland. :)

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  2. Joe, good luck with learning economics, and I mean that seriously! It's every bit as complex as teaching and will take as much study and time to learn as you can spare.

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  3. And I just noticed this Reich video is almost a year old, so by now my comments might be moot!! Oh well. LOVE your blog and you and all you're doing.

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  4. Hmmmm. Robert Reich and Warren Buffett for some reason think the government can do a better job with rich people's money, than rich people can do with it. Since the US government has since the 60's not done much of anything good with taxpayer's money (public education being only one of many glaring examples), I think we should focus instead on dramatically reducing the size of the Federal government. A good place to start is the Dept of Education. This is an unconstitutional body, and public education should be handled by states -- states the size of Finland. :)

    ReplyDelete