Middle Class

The Collapse of the Progressive Economy

workers-demonstrate-pro-union.jpg

In recent decades, progressive politics has been underwritten by the ascendant economic titans of capital, technology, and communication. Big Tech and financial firms have long financed Democratic causes, led by those such as George Soros and the now-disgraced crypto-master Sam Bankman-Fried, who was released last month on a $250 million bail deal.  read more »

A Working-Class 'Christmas Story' Christmas

christmas-story-house-tour.jpg

If you have an extra 10 million dollars lying around, little Ralphie Parker’s house from A Christmas Story (1983), is for sale. The iconic mustard colored house, located on the outskirts of Cleveland, is currently owned by Brian Jones, a superfan of the film.  read more »

Politicians Finally Embrace Need to Promote Region

house-leadership-committee-chairs.jpg

A critical mass of forces finally may be understanding the benefits of what I’ve been advocating for years: that separate political actors in Flyover Country unite to promote our region as a whole, rather than our cities and states always competing with one another for the fruits of economic development and government favor.  read more »

The New Global Class War

climate-protest-europe.jpg

In The Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels warned that the ‘spectre’ of class war loomed over a rapidly industrialising capitalist world. Today, the neoliberal world is increasingly haunted by a similar spectre, this time of a global class conflict.  read more »

A Tale of Two Americas

US-Pop-Change_2020-2021.png

Yesterday’s Midterms were not a victory for conservative or progressive ideology, but an assertion of the growing power of geography in American politics. It was less a national election than a clash of civilizations.  read more »

Biden, Trudeau Choose Green War on Oil and Gas Over Working Class

trudeau-and-biden.jpg

Canadians, outside of dual citizens, can’t vote in America’s midterms, but the results may well shape the country’s trajectory in the years to come.  read more »

Housing Affordability in California: Part 1 — The Situation

Cover-of-Metro-Land_1921.jpg

There is probably no issue more requiring resolution in California than poor housing affordability. It is a threat to the preservation of the middle-class and the competitiveness of the state.  read more »

Ohio and the Battle for Populist America

ohio-senate-race.jpg

This midterm year, in which many states have to choose between non-entities and the certifiably insane, Ohio is blessed by a real political dogfight. The Senate battle between representative Tim Ryan and Hillbilly Elegy author, JD Vance, is becoming one for the ages.  read more »

There's Nothing Progressive About a Universal Basic Income

ubi-solution-inequality-chart.png

‘Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them.’ This colourful quote, sometimes attributed to Lenin, could well apply to the many free-market ideologues and tech oligarchs in the US, who are now pushing for increased welfare payouts and even a universal basic income (UBI).  read more »

Do Cities Have a Future?

manhattan-carlos-oliva-3586966.jpg

The great core cities don’t die — but only if they are willing to change. Today the world’s great cities, such as New York or London, face dramatically changed conditions, notably the rise of remote work, fears from the pandemic, and rising crime.  read more »