The Atlantic's article "Why America Abandoned the Greatest Economy in History" provides important lessons on both the past and present economic situations that face America. The opening statistics show an insane switch in finances. The concept that within 40 years, the amount of Americans who made more than their parents dropped 42% percent is absolutely horrifying for the average American. The article discusses the difference between Roosevelt's New Deal policies, which generally raised union wages and taxed the rich more, versus Reagan's complete reversal of that idea. The reason Americans accepted Reagan's economic ideals was because as time went on, Roosevelt's policies started to falter and cause the economy to fall. It was this economic slumber that America entered that…
The article “Why America Abandoned the Greatest Economy in History” brought interesting and meaningful insights into how politics and US economy shifted since the 1900s and the economic reality for today’s generations. At a high level, the components of the article that stood out the most were the statistics and mindset change in the US politically. The author of the article, Roge Karma begins the article with an eye-opening statistic, that for “Americans born in 1940, 92% went on to earn more than their parents; among those born in 1980, just 50% did” (Karma, 2023). This statistic is eye-opening because it demonstrates how younger generations have it harder economically compared to their parents and grandparents. Media likes to portray the…
The article explains that from the 1940s to the 1970s, America's economy was structured around U.S. laws and policies in which evoked strong unions, higher tax on the wealthy, and large public investments. Financial inequality was slim. The article notes that in 1940, ninety two percent of Americans made more than their parents. Whereas in 1980, a mere fifty percent were able to do so. The piece explained that this major switch in outcomes for American earnings was due to a flip in the priorities of the government. When Ronald Regan was put in office amidst the dissatisfaction of Americans, his ideas to revert the economy back to its old ways blew up in his face. His ideas that in…
As a college student, especially someone hoping to work in business or policy someday, it’s kind of wild (and honestly frustrating) to read how different the economic outlook was for earlier generations. The statistic about how 92% of Americans born in 1940 out-earned their parents, compared to just 50% for those born in 1980, really stuck with me. It frames something a lot of people my age feel intuitively - that the “American Dream” doesn’t work the way it used to. The article does a good job breaking down that decline into three main theories, and I found all of them interesting in their own ways.
First, the idea that progress on civil rights actually triggered a backlash that hurt…
For my TeachEcoknowmics Blog Comment # 4 I chose the article "Why America Abandoned the Greatest Economy in History" by Roge Karma. This article presents an important problem Americans may face in today's world. Young professional adults have faced certain inequality dated back to Ronald Regan's presidency. Karma believes that Regan's administration did not promote economic growth but instead raised inequality and declined life expectancy compared to other rich nations. This was evident through the young professionals earning less than their parents in 1980, while before this time young professionals were making more. Karma also highlights certain civil rights issues that interplay with the downturn economy. With the emergence of civil rights for African Americans in 1960s, Karma alleges that…
The Atlantic's article "Why America Abandoned the Greatest Economy in History" provides important lessons on both the past and present economic situations that face America. The opening statistics show an insane switch in finances. The concept that within 40 years, the amount of Americans who made more than their parents dropped 42% percent is absolutely horrifying for the average American. The article discusses the difference between Roosevelt's New Deal policies, which generally raised union wages and taxed the rich more, versus Reagan's complete reversal of that idea. The reason Americans accepted Reagan's economic ideals was because as time went on, Roosevelt's policies started to falter and cause the economy to fall. It was this economic slumber that America entered that…
The article “Why America Abandoned the Greatest Economy in History” brought interesting and meaningful insights into how politics and US economy shifted since the 1900s and the economic reality for today’s generations. At a high level, the components of the article that stood out the most were the statistics and mindset change in the US politically. The author of the article, Roge Karma begins the article with an eye-opening statistic, that for “Americans born in 1940, 92% went on to earn more than their parents; among those born in 1980, just 50% did” (Karma, 2023). This statistic is eye-opening because it demonstrates how younger generations have it harder economically compared to their parents and grandparents. Media likes to portray the…
The article explains that from the 1940s to the 1970s, America's economy was structured around U.S. laws and policies in which evoked strong unions, higher tax on the wealthy, and large public investments. Financial inequality was slim. The article notes that in 1940, ninety two percent of Americans made more than their parents. Whereas in 1980, a mere fifty percent were able to do so. The piece explained that this major switch in outcomes for American earnings was due to a flip in the priorities of the government. When Ronald Regan was put in office amidst the dissatisfaction of Americans, his ideas to revert the economy back to its old ways blew up in his face. His ideas that in…
As a college student, especially someone hoping to work in business or policy someday, it’s kind of wild (and honestly frustrating) to read how different the economic outlook was for earlier generations. The statistic about how 92% of Americans born in 1940 out-earned their parents, compared to just 50% for those born in 1980, really stuck with me. It frames something a lot of people my age feel intuitively - that the “American Dream” doesn’t work the way it used to. The article does a good job breaking down that decline into three main theories, and I found all of them interesting in their own ways.
First, the idea that progress on civil rights actually triggered a backlash that hurt…
For my TeachEcoknowmics Blog Comment # 4 I chose the article "Why America Abandoned the Greatest Economy in History" by Roge Karma. This article presents an important problem Americans may face in today's world. Young professional adults have faced certain inequality dated back to Ronald Regan's presidency. Karma believes that Regan's administration did not promote economic growth but instead raised inequality and declined life expectancy compared to other rich nations. This was evident through the young professionals earning less than their parents in 1980, while before this time young professionals were making more. Karma also highlights certain civil rights issues that interplay with the downturn economy. With the emergence of civil rights for African Americans in 1960s, Karma alleges that…