Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Is America in irreversible decline?? [View all]hay rick
(7,653 posts)108. I think TV's a bigger factor than most suppose.
Americans started thinking like consumers. Instead of being citizens in a collective enterprise, they became atomistic consumers, looking for bargains and looking out for themselves. Political parties and special interests also started thinking about the people as consumers- of propaganda.
Edit history
Please sign in to view edit histories.
117 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
RecommendedHighlight replies with 5 or more recommendations
I would say it started with Reagan. But the 2000 stolen election was a serious blow. nt
raccoon
Feb 2013
#1
When the media was bought by the right-wing. Not for the purpose of informing the populace...
BlueJazz
Feb 2013
#2
I'm on rationing already! For years I used to just get ~10 gals at a time ... Now,
RKP5637
Feb 2013
#33
It's going to be very good or very bad. My observation is that real change generally only
RKP5637
Feb 2013
#25
Nixon killed the Liberal Era. Reagan killed the Great Society. Bush killed the Constit/Mid Class.
leveymg
Feb 2013
#6
My gut feeling is the US will regionalize to survive. The divides are too great, and as
RKP5637
Feb 2013
#18
1980 - when working class americans lost their collective minds and pulled the lever for reagan.
KG
Feb 2013
#9
Whoever made the first "free trade" deal. Don't know who it was, but that was the beginning of
patricia92243
Feb 2013
#12
What's not so difficult to believe is how successful it was. Mission Accomplished.
leveymg
Feb 2013
#58
Interest rates for savings are so low it's not even worth trying to save anything. And the banks are
RKP5637
Feb 2013
#19
Thank you for posting this. Often I have tried to explain to people (off DU) that
RKP5637
Feb 2013
#20
My background in physics helps me to understand! Now, I mostly take care of my cat!
RKP5637
Feb 2013
#30
I would also say that the fundamental decline continued through the Clinton years
Jackpine Radical
Feb 2013
#37
The day the first Native American was killed so we could live on their land? n/t
jtuck004
Feb 2013
#35
I'm with Hunter S. Thompson in thinking that Nixon killed the American dream.
Snarkoleptic
Feb 2013
#49
We would need three things to stop declining or at least to decline in a way that
Lydia Leftcoast
Feb 2013
#65
Being an empire is a hard act to perform. We're getting booed off the stage. That's showbiz.
Tierra_y_Libertad
Feb 2013
#67
I'm inclined to agree that it was the Sixties. Noam Chomsky reminds us that "historical amnesia"
ancianita
Feb 2013
#89
After WW II we had the world's only intact industry and all the gold in Fort Knox
FarCenter
Feb 2013
#96
we can fix it just as easily as they fucked it up,by doing the exact opposite
Fight2Win
Feb 2013
#100
Yes to in decline, it was on the march by the 70's, and no it isn't actually irreversible
TheKentuckian
Feb 2013
#101
Unless we can get the Republicans and the corporations under control and restart democracy…
MrScorpio
Feb 2013
#112
irreversible? no. but have the economic & political masters of the universe targeted it for
HiPointDem
Mar 2013
#116