THE CULTURE OF CONTENTMENT

Enviar para

Título:
THE CULTURE OF CONTENTMENT
Autor: Galbraith, John Kenneth
Assuntos: Class Relations ; Elites ; Life Satisfaction ; Political Elites ; Social Policy ; United States of America ; Upper Class
Notas: SourceType-Books-1
ObjectType-Book-1
content type line 11
Descrição: This 15-Chpt vol examines the "contented elite," & the political establishment that represents them, who have reduced the US to self-serving economic policies that create only short-term solutions. (1) The Culture of Contentment -- reviews how, throughout history, people enjoying economic & social success (the contented) have resisted political movements (eg, the New Deal) designed to ameliorate the situation of the less fortunate. (2) The Social Character of Contentment: An Overview -- explains that the contented majority is very tolerant of great differences in income because they believe that their success is a product of personal virtue, intelligence, & effort; they perceive government as a burden. (3) The Functional Underclass -- explains that, despite the political rhetoric insisting that the US is built on the concept of classlessness, an underclass does exist -- concentrated in inner cities, farms, & mining communities -- &, composed primarily of immigrants, its function is to do the work that the contented will not. (4) Taxation and the Public Services: The Perverse Effect -- argues that, in recent years, taxes have been lowered on the contented electoral majority because they vote, & social programs have been cut because government aid recipients do not vote. (5) The License for Financial Devastation -- contends that the laissez faire attitude of the contented -- ie, that in economics, all works out for the best -- can lead eventually to financial ruin for large corporations, exemplified most recently by the US airline industry. (6) The Bureaucratic Syndrome -- lists ways in which the bureaucratic tendencies of large corporations are greatly influenced by the pursuit of contentment. (7) The Economic Accommodation, I -- argues that economic thought often accommodates its view of the economic process to certain elite economic & political interests. (8) The Economic Accommodation, II -- proposes that current monetary policy: limits government's role in the economy, glorifies the pursuit & possession of wealth, & justifies a lack of public responsibility toward poverty. (9) The Foreign Policy of Contentment: The Recreational and the Real -- explains that foreign policy decisions do not have the same political & economic requirements as domestic policy, arguing that any public response to foreign policy is more rhetorical than real because most Americans are not directly affected by foreign policy decisions. (10) The Military Nexus, I -- considers the function of the military in the culture of contentment, most notably its perceived role as the shield against communism, perceived as the primary threat to contentment. (11) The Military Nexus, II -- argues that, besides being accountable to political decisions, the military establishment is quite self-sustaining & often, especially in the Third World, enjoys much independent power. (12) The Politics of Contentment -- considers how the contented affect politics & political theory, explaining that ruling political parties represent the contented & therefore design economic policy & political behavior to benefit their interests. (13) The Reckoning, I -- discusses the consequences of contentment's effects on politics, arguing that a domestic policy designed for short-term happiness & a foreign policy dominated by the military will lead to a deficient & unstable national economic performance. (14) The Reckoning, II -- discusses possible threats to the culture of contentment, concentrating on the possibility of unpopular military action & the chances of an underclass revolt. (15) Requiem -- argues that a disastrous ending can only be avoided by challenging the quick fixes of the culture of contentment to design poicies that ensure long-term economic well-being. R. Logsdon
Data de criação/publicação: 1992
Idioma: Inglês

THE CULTURE OF CONTENTMENT

Galbraith, John Kenneth

1992

Buscando em bases de dados remotas. Favor aguardar.