Whats in this dysfunctional culture of concentrated wealth? Look around Wall Street. Youll find tribal insularity, short-term thinking, personal irresponsibility, cynicism about playing by the rules, an aversion to socially productive labor, a habit of shameless materialism, an inability to defer gratification and a lack of concern for what message all this sends to the youth raised in such an environment. In short, youll find the very things typically imputed to the culture of poverty. Now, to be sure, there are poor people who do exhibit these antisocial values and norms. And there is no question that plenty of poor people are poor because they made bad choices and behaved in self-destructive ways. But rich people who exhibit such values have something the poor dont: Money. Money buys exemption from bad choices. Money confers power -- in particular, over the poor. It confers the power to frame public narrative and policymaking and to determine whose behavior -- whose culture -- is (and isnt) called pathological.
Posted on: Thu, 10 Apr 2014 05:10:46 +0000