"Saving Capitalism from Itself"
BY PHILIP KOTLER – This country badly needs serious and comprehensive tax reform but it is not likely to get it. The Republicans couldn’t get health reform or immigration reform and they are not likely to get tax reform. Their bills are always flawed by insisting on proposals without Democratic participation. Although the Republicans have … Continue reading The Nightmare of Tax Reform
BY CHRISTIAN SARKAR – Even as Houston slowly recovers from Hurricane Harvey, there’s a buzz at the Art Car Museum on Heights Boulevard. Trump THIS! is a thought-provoking exhibition to say the least. It’s the 12th Annual Open Call exhibition… READ all about it in the Huffington Post >>
BY PHILIP KOTLER – There is a hidden meaning behind Trump’s slogan to “Make America Great Again.” His slogan is code for “Let’s Make America White again.” Immigration policy is one of the toughest issues facing the U.S. and its core beliefs and values. Both political parties are doing their best to bury or avoid … Continue reading The Closing of the Golden Door: When Fear Became U.S. Immigration Policy
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. Free-market capitalism has subverted our democracy. The growth of income inequality has undermined the American Dream. Increasing polarization has destroyed our unity as a nation. The plutocracy must end. We need to produce wealth for … Continue reading A Manifesto for Just Capitalism
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 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? Neither party today is answering or … 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. A single-payer … Continue reading It’s Time For A Single-Payer Healthcare System
BY PHILIP KOTLER – Our new President, Donald Trump, has decided that building a Mexican Wall and increasing the U.S. military budget by $54 billion (over the present military budget of $596 billion) are the most important early steps to take in his first term. But building the Wall might cost as much as $40 billion … 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. Donald Trump got elected as U.S. President on a platform that included a lot of changes that appealed to many people. Trump promised to “Make America Great Again” by bringing back the high paying jobs that had moved overseas … 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 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 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
Philip Kotler’s upcoming book – Democracy in Decline: Rebuilding its Future describes 14 symptoms of a sick democracy: #1. Voter Literacy & Turnout #2. Quality of Political Leadership #3. Exceptionalism #4. Public Trust #5. Gridlock #6. Money in Politics #7. Gerrymandering #8. Extremist Primaries #9. The President vs. Congress #10. Federal vs. State Governments #11. Supreme Court vs. … Continue reading Democracy in Decline: An Interview with Phil Kotler
Where did the wheels come off our Democracy? by Christian Sarkar John Ehrenreich is an American author, academic, and clinical psychologist who has published books on health policy, US social policy, and US history. He is the author of Third Wave Capitalism: How Money, Power, and the Pursuit of Self-Interest have Imperiled the American Dream … Continue reading Third Wave Capitalism – An Interview with John Ehrenreich
BY MARK BLESSINGTON I long for a reemergence of an FDR-like era. FDR was a no compromise Democrat. He was even willing to take on the Supreme Court. It happened before, and it can happen again, if we push hard enough. I’m not ready to give up on the USA yet. For me, Hillary Clinton represents giving up … Continue reading No-Compromise: Why We (The People) Can’t Take It Anymore
BY SUHAIB RIAZ, University of Massachusetts Boston; Sean Buchanan, University of Manitoba, and Trish Ruebottom, Brock University Reforming Wall Street has become a key issue in the ongoing presidential primaries. Bernie Sanders in particular has used his rival’s close ties to the financial industry, including speaking fees and political donations, to suggest Hillary Clinton wouldn’t … Continue reading Why is it so difficult to rein in Wall Street?
Ryan J. Thomas, University of Missouri-Columbia In a 2012 column, former New York Times public editor Arthur Brisbane asked his readers if the Times should be a “truth vigilante.” Clumsily worded and unnecessarily dramatic, Brisbane’s question pertained to something simpler: whether Times reporters should fact-check assertions made by subjects and sources in the text of … Continue reading Why presidential debates need real-time fact-checking
At what income does the middle class end and the rich begin? Hillary defined the rich as starting with incomes over $250,000. Bryce Covert, in an article, claimed that the middle class ends at $206,568. Why? Because this is the income that defines the start of the top 5% of income earners. The top 5% is … Continue reading Needed: A New Set of Income Tax Brackets
By Mark Blessington I call this the Era of Compromise Democrats. From an economic perspective, the last Democrat to really fight for the people was Franklin D. Roosevelt. He was even brave enough to stand up to the Supreme Court. While President Obama immediately spoke out against Citizens United in 2010, he did nothing to directly oppose it. … Continue reading The Sad Legacy of Compromise Democrats
BY J RICHARD HARVEY, JR., Villanova School of Law – Corporate inversions have been front page news in the US for months with everyone from President Barack Obama to the man on the street expressing a view as their usage has surged. Unfortunately, many of these views are not well informed. For example, most news reports cite … Continue reading What’s driving the surge of corporate inversions?
by Philip Kotler Hillary Clinton’s stated recently that she will not raise taxes on the middle class. She will raise taxes only on the rich and super rich. But at what income does the middle class end and the rich begin? Hillary defined the rich as starting with incomes over $250,000. Bryce Covert, in an … Continue reading Needed: A New Set of Income Tax Brackets [A Response to the “$250,000 a Year Is Not Middle Class” Op-Ed by Bryce Covert]
Phil Kotler’s latest article in FORTUNE asks us to ask more questions. In the last Republican TV debate, Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief, Gerald Baker, put the following question to presidential candidate Rand Paul: “Income inequality has been rising in the United States. Fifty years ago, for example, the average CEO of a big corporation in this country earned … Continue reading FORTUNE: What the Presidential Candidates Are Failing to Address About CEO Pay
The Econ4 network of teachers, professors, practitioners, students and others are working to shift how economics is understood, taught and practiced. We’re now launching a video contest to crowdsource as many short, 3 minute videos about “Greed” as possible. We will distribute many of these across our network and beyond. The contest is patterned after the … Continue reading CALL FOR ENTRIES: Greed! A Video Contest from Econ4
Richard Gunther, Ohio State University On November 3, Ohio voters approved by a margin of 71% to 29% a constitutional amendment that will greatly reduce, or even eliminate, the gerrymandering of state legislative districts beginning in 2021. Ratification of Issue 1 by the voters followed its approval by bipartisan votes of 28-1 in the Ohio … Continue reading Ohio strikes blow against gerrymandering
Corpocracy is the absurd reality of our society in which corporations and their interests are allowed to have dominance over the economic and political systems. Through the subversive imagination, the artist works toward a transformation of social consciousness. WATCH: The show features 13 artists including, Beehive Design Collective, Michael D’Antuono, Ron English, Clark Fox, Kenneth … Continue reading VIDEO: Corpocracy – at the Station Museum of Contemporary Art
by Jon Queally, staff writer – CommonDreams.org An independent investigation by journalists featured in the New York Times on Sunday offers an in-depth look at the way American corporations have used the inclusion of “arbitration clauses” within consumer contracts to strategically circumvent judicial review of their behavior and immunize themselves from class action lawsuits –”realistically the only tool citizens have to fight … Continue reading Corporate America’s Plan to ‘Misbehave Without Reproach
Janet Napolitano, University of California, Office of the President In this presidential election season, one thing is certain: candidates will rarely – if ever – be asked what they would do to keep this nation at the forefront of science and innovation. That’s a shame. The public dialogue about science is perhaps the most vital … Continue reading Janet Napolitano: Why more scientists are needed in the public square
Considered one of the world’s most controversial artists, Michael D’Antuono is known for making art that challenges people to think more deeply about sociopolitical issues. His collectors range from Arnold Schwarzenegger to Pete Seeger and his work has received high praise from fellow artists Shepard Fairey and Banksy. What made you decide to dive into this sort of … Continue reading Art & Response: An Interview with Michael D’Antuono
Yoshua Okón was born in Mexico City in 1970 where he currently lives. His work has been described as “a series of near-sociological experiments executed for the camera, blends staged situations, documentation and improvisation and questions habitual perceptions of reality and truth, selfhood and morality.” Okón challenges the assumptions we make as so many of us live our lives … Continue reading Questioning Reality: Yoshua Okón’s Videos of Alienation
Clark V. Fox (aka Michael Clark), the “Godfather of modern underground art,” started making art full time in Houston, Texas at age 5 and has never slowed down since. “Art chose me: I’m an American Indian, and Indians make stuff. My father carved. My mother painted. when I was five, I’d go up and down the … Continue reading The Struggle Against Joyless Materialism: The Art of Clark Fox
Social practice is an art medium that focuses on social engagement, inviting collaboration with individuals, communities, and institutions in the creation of participatory art. For artist Kenneth Tin-Kin Hung, social practice meant taking on the very foundation of capitalist society – money. Running out of money? What’s an artist/entrepreneur to do? Why not make like the Federal … Continue reading Make it Rain (∄MIR): The Social Practice of Kenneth Tin-Kin Hung
Ron English is a troublemaker, an outlaw artist. His almost-spiritual attack on corporate billboards and their consumerist messages have won him the admiration of the public across the world. POPaganda: The Art and Crimes of Ron English is a documentary that captures English at his best (and worst?). Do you want to know why Joe Camel is no … Continue reading POPaganda: The Art and Crimes of Ron English
David Cobb’s latest on We the People, Not We the Corporations, is up on our Huffington Post FIXCapitalism channel. Read the article, and watch this interview below:
House Joint Resolution 29 introduced February 14, 2013 Section 1. [Artificial Entities Such as Corporations Do Not Have Constitutional Rights] The rights protected by the Constitution of the United States are the rights of natural persons only. Artificial entities established by the laws of any State, the United States, or any foreign state shall have no rights under this Constitution … Continue reading Move to Amend’s Proposed 28th Amendment to the US Constitution
This course is an economic history of what happened to ordinary American people and families from about 1930 to 2010. From the late 1940s to about 1980 ordinary people and families in the United States enjoyed a tremendous increase in their prosperity and quality of life, especially when compared with the conditions that existed during … Continue reading Free Online Class: “The Creation and Destruction of the Great American Middle Class (1930-2010)” with Professor Stanley Stasch
A video on the distribution of wealth in America, highlighting both the inequality and the difference between our perception of inequality and the actual numbers. The reality is often not what we think it is.
We’ve just begun a partnership with Huffington Post – and we invite you to join us. It’s worth repeating why we’re doing this: Capitalism must evolve to serve the needs of all citizens, not just the very affluent. Our goal is to discuss the 14 Shortcomings of Capitalism and systematically analyze the problems and potential solutions. … Continue reading Our Partnership with Huffington Post – Join Us!
Hedrick Smith is a Pulitzer Prize-winning former New York Times reporter and editor, and Emmy award-winning producer/correspondent. He has won most of television’s top awards including two Emmys and two Dupont-Columbia Gold batons for the best public affairs programs on U.S. television in 1991 and in 2002. His current best-seller, Who Stole the American Dream … Continue reading WATCH: Hedrick Smith on Who Stole the American Dream?
… then I don’t know what is. Monsanto’s U.S. market share is 90% in soybean and 80% in corn seed sales (Dan Mitchell, Fortune). In the same article, Larry Robbins of the Glenview Capital hedge fund goes further and says Monsanto has “perpetual local monopolies.” They tie farmers to contracts for life. The Monsanto case is a perfect illustration of at … Continue reading If 90% Market Share Isn’t a Monopoly …
Confronting Capitalism by Philip Kotler is organized around 14 shortcomings. The list is broad and his thinking is brave and deep without being strident or bleak—a daunting challenge and a wonderful contribution given the controversial if not explosive nature of emotions at the intersection of money and politics. Kotler’s inaugural post for this site invites enhancements … Continue reading The Great Corporate Tax Dodge
![Needed: A New Set of Income Tax Brackets [A Response to the “$250,000 a Year Is Not Middle Class” Op-Ed by Bryce Covert]](https://fixcapitalism.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Screen-Shot-2015-12-28-at-5.55.38-PM-256x256.png)
