My Last Column: Finding Hope in an Age of Resentment. Paul Krugman

[elleng]

'This is my final column for The New York Times, where I began publishing my opinions in January 2000. I’m retiring from The Times, not the world, so I’ll still be expressing my views in other places. But this does seem like a good occasion to reflect on what has changed over these past 25 years.

What strikes me, looking back, is how optimistic many people, both here and in much of the Western world, were back then and the extent to which that optimism has been replaced by anger and resentment. And I’m not just talking about members of the working class who feel betrayed by elites; some of the angriest, most resentful people in America right now — people who seem very likely to have a lot of influence with the incoming Trump administration — are billionaires who don’t feel sufficiently admired. . .

Why did this optimism curdle? As I see it, we’ve had a collapse of trust in elites: The public no longer has faith that the people running things know what they’re doing, or that we can assume that they’re being honest.

It was not always thus. Back in 2002 and ’03, those of us who argued that the case for invading Iraq was fundamentally fraudulent received a lot of pushback from people refusing to believe that an American president would do such a thing. Who would say that now?. . .

These days there has been a lot of discussion of the hard right turn of some tech billionaires, from Elon Musk on down. I’d argue that we shouldn’t overthink it, and we especially shouldn’t try to say that this is somehow the fault of politically correct liberals. Basically it comes down to the pettiness of plutocrats who used to bask in public approval and are now discovering that all the money in the world can’t buy you love.

So is there a way out of the grim place we’re in? What I believe is that while resentment can put bad people in power, in the long run it can’t keep them there. At some point the public will realize that most politicians railing against elites actually are elites in every sense that matters and start to hold them accountable for their failure to deliver on their promises.'>>

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/09/opinion/elites-euro-social-media.html

[SWBTATTReg]

1. Well, explain why such a small group of elites rec'd the lion's share of the spoils, from going public, such as

Elon Musk, Bezos, Gates, etc. Hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollar in pay, stock appreciation, etc., while the vast majority of us got squat or barely min. wage. How is that fair?

[Escurumbele]

7. People go against Bezos, Gates, but these people are selfmade, they both started from nothing.

Gates still does a lot of charitable work, his foundation with his ex-wife gives a lot of money to good causes. On Bezos? I don't know how much he helps out, but he also made it on his own, and neither of them are evil.

Musk? I will admit that I don't know how this guy came down to so much money, but he is a crazy SOB, that is for sure. I will read about his beginnings just to find out if he is self-made or just a lucky guy who was given a lot of money by those who did do it on their own.

Anyway, we cannot go against every person who is a millionaire or billionaire, they are not all bad, and we have to admit when they got to where they are thanks to their ingenuity, hard work, and see what they are doing with their wealth today. That they are making 15,000 sq/ft homes for themselves? Why not? but are they helping people who need help? There has to be a balance, we cannot vilify everyone who made, we have to see who they are, what kind of person they are and what they do with their money, not everyone is bad.

[SWBTATTReg]

10. I know that. I have far more respect for Gates and Warren Buffet, and I'm not going against every person of wealth

as you seem to think I do. I didn't say that as you implied in your response, and I wasn't 'going after' every person who is wealthy. And I well aware of the profit motive when someone creates something of value and get awarded in return, as well as not vilifying everyone. Give me a break.

1. Well, explain why such a small group of elites rec'd the lion's share of the spoils, from going public, such as
Reply to elleng (Original post)
Mon Dec 9, 2024, 05:02 PM
Elon Musk, Bezos, Gates, etc. Hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollar in pay, stock appreciation, etc., while the vast majority of us got squat or barely min. wage. How is that fair?

[dlk]

2. I have been a fan of Krugman for years

And will miss his columns that inject sanity and reason into our financial/social discourse.

He nailed it describing billionaires who have become testy because they’re no longer revered, as in the past. People have come to realize they are human, with feet of clay, and not the gods they’ve been made out to be for far too long.

[usonian]

3. HE AIN'T DEAD!

He just stepped out of the MSM gutter.

The MSM is dead, doing little more than echo the word of oligarchy.

They're real good at writing clickbait headlines. Right.

Archived: https://archive.is/i9M8H

[dalton99a]

4. Kick

[Escurumbele]

5. "The public no longer has faith that the people running things know what they're doing" This is a mistake...

I have seen this in many parts of the World where corruption reigns, where dictators take charge, and people think they are INCOMPETENT.

Please learn this...THEY ARE VERY COMPETENT! We think they are not because of the evil things they do, but they know very well what they are doing. Take for instance trump's tariffs...They know this will devastate the economy, but they are going through with it because chaos is important for dictators, they have already found their enemies, the Democrats, and everything the new administration intentionally screws up will be blamed on Democrats, their intent is to create more division. Can anyone say they have been incompetent up to this point? They were able to get a buffoon elected again, a monkey who can use a pen (Grover Norquist), with all the trials, with all the true dirt we all know about trump and he got elected again...That is not incompetence, IT IS COMPETENCE!

To think the mafia is incompetent is wrong, they are evil, they are criminals but, they are very good at it.

So please, stop calling these people incompetent, it takes away from the truth of the situation, accept their evil ways are by design, premeditated, and well executed, when we accept this we can fight it better but, when we accept incompetence in their part we sit down to wait for a failure that will not happen. Just look at dictatorships around the World, look at Venezuela where people kept calling them incompetent, made jokes about it, but when it comes down to it...were they really incompetent? No, they are still there, all the people at the top are billionaires while the rest of the country goes hungry, the so called leader's families are all around the globe, the kids studying in the best universities, those who are done with their school living in mansions. Just take a visit to Weston, Florida and see the mansions, the ranches that are all owned by these Venezuelan criminal families...can we call that incompetent? I don't think so, criminal? Yes.

[Paladin]

6. Proof that the NYT opinion section can always get shittier. (nt)

[Martin68]

8. I hope Krugman is right. I have great respect for the man.

[Festivito]

9. "...billionaires who don't feel sufficiently admired."

Fat cats who have cornered a food supply.

Each one's self-importance not admired sufficiently.

Not by bigger or stronger or smarter fellow fat cats,
not by family who occasionally feast,
not by house cats blaming their tasteless kibble, and
not the skinny unconnected ones.

The ferals revel, how well anarchy works for us remembering a taste they earned.

No, the fat ones will never buy love with hording.