Aftershock

by Reich, Robert B.

• ISBN13: 9781410434128
• ISBN10: 1410434125
• Edition: Large
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-01-19
• Publisher: Thorndike Pr

Summary

When the nation's economy foundered in 2008, blame was almost universally directed at Wall Street. But celebrated economic policy maker and political theorist Robert B. Reich suggests a different reason for the meltdown, and for a potentially treacherous road ahead: the increasing concentration of income and wealth at the top, and a middle class that had to go deeply into debt to maintain a decent standard of living. In Aftershock, Reich offers a practical, humane, and much-needed blueprint for lastingly improving America's economy. Book jacket.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Pendulum	p. 11
The Broken Bargain
Eccles's Insight	p. 23
Parallels	p. 35
The Basic Bargain	p. 50
How Concentrated Income at the Top Hurts the Economy	p. 56
Why Policymakers Obsess About the Financial Economy Instead of About the Real One	p. 66
The Great Prosperity: 1947-1975	p. 72
How We Got Ourselves into the Same Mess Again	p. 86
How Americans Kept Buying Anyway: The Three Coping Mechanisms	p. 101
The Future Without Coping Mechanisms	p. 107
Why China Won't Save Us	p. 115
No Return to Normal	p. 124
Backlash
The 2020 Election	p. 129
The Politics of Economics, 2010-2020	p. 133
Why Can't We Be Content with Less?	p. 138
The Pain of Economic Loss	p. 145
Adding Insult to Injury	p. 149
Outrage at a Rigged Game	p. 162
The Politics of Anger	p. 184
The Bargain Restored
What Should Be Done: A New Deal for the Middle Class	p. 201
How It Could Get Done	p. 223
Acknowledgments	p. 233
Notes	p. 235
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.