The Obligations of the Elites
ENTERPRISE BLOG
By James DeLong on Economic Policy
Americans are fond of pontificating about the level of corruption in China, so it is interesting to see what the Chinese are reading in the Asia Times about corruption in America. The gist of "BP versus GS - spot the difference" is that Goldman Sachs bears heavy responsibility for the financial crisis and "has gotten away almost scot-free. It has been saved and enriched at the taxpayer expense, and its special treatment by the George W Bush and Barack Obama administrations is becoming more offensive with every passing day and with every new revelation."
On the merits of the allegations, I have no knowledge to affirm or deny. The part that interests me is the perception of the United States as compared with Asia.
A few days ago I talked with a New China Hand, a sophisticated editor and analyst based in Beijing. I asked him if the Chinese leadership felt a serious moral obligation to improve the lot of their people and nation, as opposed to a cynical desire just to stay at the top of the heap and get rich.
He hedged, saying that there is indeed a lot of corruption, so it is a bit odd to speak of moral obligations. I pressed, saying that I didn't object to a ruling class taking 10 percent for handling, as long as its members are convinced that what they were doing is for the benefit of the people. Classic examples are the great U.S. industrial barons of the 19th century, who had no doubt whatsoever that they were doing America's, and God's, work (and they were right). Classic examples of the other way are Third-World kleptocrats, who feel no obligation, or Latin American latifundia owners, who oppose development because it might erode their position in the social and economic order.
Cast in these terms, his answer is clear: the Chinese ruling class does indeed feel such a moral obligation to its nation and people, even as it happily collects its handling fees. The Asia Times article thus raises a crucial question: Does the American ruling class feel the same obligation, or is it willing to engage in destructive policies for the sake of its own profit and control?
A major force in politics today is that the contemporary class of American yeomen (great phrase—I wish I remembered from whom I stole it) increasingly agrees with the assessment in the Asian Times. They doubt that the nation's ruling elites (of either party) have this sense of moral obligation. They fear that these elites are loyal to nothing except themselves and their small tribes, and that they are willing to engage in highly destructive behavior for the aggrandizement of narrow interests.
These elites better prove them wrong, or the level of turmoil will grow great indeed. While self-interest always matters, the great tides of politics are religious and moral, and it is these factors that are coming into play. Let's hope the elites will rise to the challenge. Being regarded as less morally worthy than a provincial governor in China is failing to clear a pretty low bar. |
