(Good analysis - screwy conclusion! - CL)
The American working class is losing the things that make life worth living, replaced by dependency and hopelessness.
The American working class is losing the things that make life worth living, replaced by dependency and hopelessness.
A number of
pieces have, over the course of this election cycle, delved into the question of America’s “lost”
greatness, and what would lead voters to find Donald Trump’s message so
appealing. It is not that hard to understand in this context. You are one
of the millions of middle-aged unemployed white American with a high school
degree. Having moved from unemployment benefits to disability, you receive
sufficient benefits to subsist – around 1,200 dollars a month on average – and
to pay for the alcohol and drugs that help you self-medicate, in addition to
what your doctor has prescribed. Your life is essentially one marked by
hopelessness. You are statistically unlikely to ever re-enter the workforce.
For all too many Americans in this segment of the
population, the things that make life not only endurable but happy are faith,
now lost to us; family, which is fractured; community, which is disintegrated;
and work, which most find hard to come by. The TV screen flickers with images
of people living lives you could never hope to emulate. Your situation is
bleak, and while our soma is better, it is still not a replacement for the
pursuit of happiness.
