"Saving Capitalism from Itself"
BY PHILIP KOTLER and CHRISTIAN SARKAR “If you are silent at a moment like this, if you do not condemn the racism you see through whatever channels and avenues you have, you can leave church now because you’re doing church wrong,” – Robert Wright Lee, IV, minister and descendant of General Robert E. Lee The tragic … Continue reading How did we get to Charlottesville?
PHILIP KOTLER – Here is a brief manifesto for our priorities, if we mean to save Democracy in the USA. (via The Huffington Post)
BY DIMITAR SABEV – From its very beginning marketing enhanced economic growth by provoking and channelling consumption, and in many cases this has been socially beneficial. There is growing evidence that the social and economic system based on the premise of constant and rapid growth has breached its limits. Consumption has to decouple from economic growth … Continue reading Consumption, Economic Growth And The Future Of Marketing
BY PHILIP KOTLER – Among the millions of products and services produced each year, there is a group loosely called ‘sin’ products. Think of “alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana” as major sin products. Think of “prostitution services” as a ‘sin’ service type. Think of recent efforts to discourage the consumption of soft drinks, candy, and packaged … Continue reading Should Government Put a Tax on ‘Sin’ Products and Services?
By PHILIP KOTLER – Why is it that in a rich country like the U.S., poverty continues to affect 50 million citizens, about 15 percent of our citizens? At the other end, the top 0.1% of our citizens receive 40% of all income and own 40% of all our wealth. Numerous studies show that our … Continue reading Is Universal Basic Income Inevitable?
BY PHILIP KOTLER and CHRISTIAN SARKAR – For many years, Americans held a clear idea of the differences between the Republican and Democratic parties. The Republicans were a party on the right, the Democrats a party on the left. But now the distinctions aren’t so clear. What went wrong? Read Brand Confusion: What Do Our … Continue reading Brand Confusion: What Do Our Political Parties Stand For?
BY MARK BLESSINGTON – True or false: Are America’s wealthy few growing their wealth at the expense of everyone else? The question is not whether the rich are getting richer. The question is whether they are gaining wealth at the expense of everyone else. The Congressional Budget Office provides a comprehensive report on wealth every three … Continue reading Progressive Taxes: Needed to Offset Income Inequality?
By MARK BLESSINGTON – The Republicans just failed to repeal and replace Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Most explanations miss why the Republican plan failed. The answer comes from answering a key question: Why did ACA insurance rates rise in 2016? The answer is absurdly simple: Because US health insurance companies jacked-up their ACA … Continue reading Fixing Obamacare—the Right Way
By PHILIP KOTLER – We have had “Obamacare” and now the Republicans have fallen short in replacing it with “Ryancare” (a.k.a. “Trumpcare”). Both plans have their unforgiving and deep critics and enemies. I think that it is time to adopt the healthcare system that Canada and most other nations have: a single-payer healthcare system. Read the … Continue reading It’s Time For A Single-Payer Healthcare System
BY PHILIP KOTLER – Republicans and conservatives claim that they are the party defending American culture. But the fact is, they are not culture saviors. They have been at war with the Arts for some time now. But now Donald Trump’s people talk about dismantling the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and … Continue reading Kulturkampf: Trump’s War on the Arts
[Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Global Imperial Plutocratic/Kleptocratic Brave New Fantasyworld of Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump] BY SCOTT DEWEY – As long as humans worship the trappings and display of power and wealth—as with celebrity, political power, military power, economic power—and they obviously do—there can be no democracy; democracy cannot … Continue reading Why We Worship False Idols, Always Have, And Always Will
BY PHILIP KOTLER The US has been downgraded in The Economist’s Democracy Index. It is now in the “flawed democracy” category. What is most disturbing is the President Trump’s attack on the idea of America. America is an idea, not simply a country. This is not an accident. What we see with Trump is a systematic targeting of all the institutions and … Continue reading The ‘Terrorist’ in the White House
BY PHILP KOTLER Lobbying describes the effort of lobbyists to influence decisions made by government officials such as legislators, regulators or judges. The term came from the fact that “influence peddlers” would appear in the lobby of legislative buildings to buttonhole legislators and influence their voting on behalf of the legislators’ clients. Most of the … Continue reading Lobbying: The Scourge of Good Government
FLYNT L. LEVERETT, Pennsylvania State University and ROBERT SPRINKLE, University of Maryland Chinese President Xi Jinping’s appearance at last week’s World Economic Forum shows global leadership is shifting, not drifting, toward Beijing. The most vigorous defense of globalization and multilateral cooperation was mounted not by an American statesman, but by the president of the People’s … Continue reading China steps up as US steps back from global leadership
BY JOANNE BERNSTEIN “May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.” —President John Adams, upon moving into the new White House. All of us who are passionate about the arts are repelled by our new administration’s promise to eliminate the NEA, the NEH, and government funding for PBS. We know that cutting … Continue reading The Real Value of Government Support for the Arts in the U.S.
BY PHILIP KOTLER & CHRISTIAN SARKAR – As President-Elect Trump and his “Corporate Cabinet” take over Washington – the American public will witness radical changes taking place in our institutions, policies, and regulations. These changes might undermine America’s position as the world’s leader over the past century. The billionaires and generals who make up Trump’s cabinet bring … Continue reading Are We Kissing Democracy Goodbye?
BY PHILIP KOTLER – America’s greatness was recently challenged by Donald Trump who asserted that the U.S. had lost its greatness. His campaign slogan was “Make America Great Again.” He claimed that only he and his party could restore the country’s greatness. This raises the question: How can we define where a country ranks in its “greatness?” Read my article … Continue reading What would Make America Great Again? The Battle Between Two Definitions of Greatness
BY RALPH NADER – Even for a failed gambling czar, Donald Trump has been surprisingly quick to show his hand as he sets the course of his forthcoming presidency. With a reactionary fervor, he is bursting backwards into the future. He has accomplished this feat through the first wave of nominations to his Cabinet and … Continue reading Trump Trumpets His Real Plans
By ROBERT WEISSMAN “Trump has converted the GOP into a populist working-class party,” Trump advisor and far-right economist Stephen Moore told Republican members of Congress at a caucus meeting. Well, advisor Moore, meet the Trump transition team. The leader of the would-be populist working-class party has invited rogues’ gallery of insiders—corporate lawyers, investment fund managers, … Continue reading What Populism? Trump’s America Is Party Time for the Corporate Elite
BY PHILIP KOTLER If We Face a Jobless World, What Can We do About it? A depressing thought: U.S. citizens are facing the prospect of slower economic growth for the next 10 or 20 years. Instead of returning to the 3.5% growth rate of the post war period, GDP, at best might grow at only … Continue reading Are We Facing a Jobless World?
