Read a Pacific Northwest, liberal perspective on world, national, and local politics. From majestic Redmond, Washington - the Northwest Progressive Institute Advocate.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Are we headed for a depression?

The news isn't getting much better in the financial sector.

Last week the Los Angeles Times reported that "an index of bank stocks slid 4.1%, giving it a loss of 21% for the week."

What does the future hold for Americans and the world?

Will we see Depression-era lines at soup kitchens? 21st century Hoovervilles springing up to replace suburban sprawl? Desperate men and women fighting each other for whatever jobs they can get their hands on?

No matter how many paper securities become worthless or how many numbers disappear off the computers at financial institutions, it's important to remember all the world's raw materials, equipment, knowledge, and the people who use them have not disappeared. The main difference between a depression and a recovery is that in a depression, much more of those things are idle - not producing anything - thus leading to great scarcity.

In a recent interview about the December occupation of the Republic Window and Doors factory in Chicago, a union activist said they were perhaps most inspired by developments in Latin America, such as the Brazilian land occupations, the Venezuelan employee-run co-operatives, and the Argentine factory occupations:
Time will tell whether the Republic struggle will be viewed as a bell-weather event or a flash in the pan. On the one hand, the occupation led to a huge outpouring of support - from solidarity rallies all across the country to donations of money, food and essential supplies. That this support was on a scale unthinkable only a year ago is proof that this action spoke to the desire of working class people to seek ways to resist to the current economic onslaught. On the other hand, for this event to be a spark others will have to pick up the baton. That means organized labor will have to take some measure of risk, embracing militant tactics when necessary and abandoning its reliance on political maneuvering as the primary means for the advancement of a working class agenda.
As the financial situation worsens and more resources fall idle, will we let ourselves become the victims of a collapsing economy, or will we invest in our common wealth and put people back to work? The latter course of action is the only responsible choice. Problem is, conservatives and Republicans don't want to spend public money rebuilding our infrastructure. They're fine with tax cuts to people who don't need any more money, but they're against making investments in things we all use and rely on, like our highway system or electric grid.

We can stave off depression and preserve economic security, but we have to invest. In Barack Obama's words, we must remake America.

And we have to start now.

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