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Strategies & Market Trends : The Residential Real Estate Crash Index -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Conan who wrote (4655)	8/26/2002 2:09:19 PM
From: MSI	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 306849

Conan, good observations. If you get a chance, read Phillips "Wealth and Democracy", which expands on what you mention, and goes into historical perspective since 1700's on cycles between concentration of wealth, and democratization. We're currently reaching an unprecedented level in the "concentration of wealth and rule of the elite" with the current administration. It'll be tough to turn around. The increase in unelected governance, in everything from the judiciary, "fixed" political races, and corp-sponsored world managers such as WTO, are eliminating both citizen and national soveriegnty, and have reached an unprecedented level, worse than when the railroads virtually ran the Senate in the 19th century. The SEC is another example of unelected governance, reporting to its banker managers, and not the public. In millions of small and large ways, the plutocracy of the most-connected 1% act knowingly or otherwise to subvert the democracy of the poor and middle class. Historically when this has happened in Holland and England, it hasn't changed until the middle class gets PO'd enough to riot in the streets. We're probably seeing the beginnings of that in Oregon over the weekend.

To: Conan who wrote (4655)	8/26/2002 7:42:51 PM
From: David Jones	Respond to of 306849

...segregated enclaves in American for the past 30 years... It has a lot less to do with desired segregation that it does economics for the builder/buyer. Although one could believe one is holding out the unwashed in fact at the time of construction and first purchase, one is the unwashed. After purchase then comes the not in my back yard mentality. Contributing to sky rocketing prices. Price is the driver.

To: Conan who wrote (4655)	8/27/2002 8:03:51 AM
From: Oblomov	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 306849

some good points, particularly this one: >>To the extent that the middle class wield political power in the form of popular tax breaks like the deductability >>of home mortgage interest and the proliferation of suburbs, SUVs, and large barbeques they are utterly >>despised by the rich. But, note that the disgust of the upper and upper middle class for the middle class is founded primarily on the tastes of the middle class rather than resentment of middle class political power. The middle class of the present day hardly meets the Marxian definition of "bourgeoisie". The vast majority of the middle class works for a living, though at higher paying jobs than the lower classes, and their relatively high spending power permits the conceit that they are not just a "cognitive proletariat". Many Americans consider it inappropriate to even discuss class. Yet, it underlies many of the features of our culture. And I think it is a fascinating topic. But I think that it is simplistic to argue that class is merely an expression of differences in power, or that class differences equate to inequities in power.