Phil Gramm: America Is A Nation Of Whiners
By Justin Gardner | Related entries in 2008 Election, Dumb Things Said By Smart People, Economy, McCain, Republicans
Today we find that Former Texas republican senator and top economic advisor to McCain serves up a completely clueless assessment of why America’s workforce is struggling…
And yet the Wash Times’ headline of this article is “McCain adviser talks of ‘mental recession’”
“You’ve heard of mental depression; this is a mental recession,” he said, noting that growth has held up at about 1 percent despite all the publicity over losing jobs to India, China, illegal immigration, housing and credit problems and record oil prices. “We may have a recession; we haven’t had one yet.”“We have sort of become a nation of whiners,” he said. “You just hear this constant whining, complaining about a loss of competitiveness, America in decline” despite a major export boom that is the primary reason that growth continues in the economy, he said.
That “whining” is coming from a workforce who are seeing their workload increase, their productivity increase, but their pay remain stagnant. Meanwhile, this global economy of ours is resulting in higher prices for basic goods like food, gas, utilities, etc.
And yes, our growth has held up, but that’s only because the low value of the dollar increases exports. Again, are workers seeing any of that increased profit? Not a chance. And let’s not even get into the 3 million+ manufacturing jobs we’ve lost in the past 8 years.
So then, maybe Phil Gramm needs to stop whining about people’s perceptions of the economy and start talking to some real people about how their lives are really going, because it’s clear he’s suffering from a “mental recession” of his own.
This entry was posted on Thursday, July 10th, 2008 and is filed under 2008 Election, Dumb Things Said By Smart People, Economy, McCain, Republicans. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
July 10th, 2008 at 11:08 am
Well, Gramm is correct the the economy has not itself tanked.
The problem, however is that for 99% of Americans “the economy” really means “my economy.” Recent developments going on in “my economy” (meaning each individual’s perceptions) relate very closely to one single development and the subsequent ripples.
It’s about fuel prices, stupid. High oil prices have led to rippling inflation which is putting pressure both on everyday folks pocketbooks and on monetary policy.
Now, it’s customary within the confines of the liberal economic liturgy to talk about stagnant wages, lost manufacturing jobs, and so on. But the sad fact is that ship has sailed. Globalization is wave we can’t protect ourselves from, only surf. Manufacturing is never going to be what it was, and the american workers of today and tomorrow WILL have to compete with equally skilled and highly motivated foreign workers. That’s all there is to it.
So our culture does need to collectively wake up and smell the coffee. Jobs like making cars at $40+/hr plus awesome bennies and a cushy pension? Forget it. That is OVER. I have a master’s degree and work in a relatively white-collar profession, and my compensation is nowhere near what GM workers have received.
It’s well past time for Americans to understand the following: the age when large numbers of relatively unskilled workers did very well for themselves financially was a historical aberration. This period lasted long enough for some Americans to think it was a birthright. Well, it’s over. Finished. Kaput. Tell your kids to pay attention in school, work hard, and develop serious 21st century skills. Reform social institutions around a world where folks may have 5, 10, 15, 20 different jobs in a lifetime. Stop making light of the fact that “hey I was never no good at math and dad did ok…. .”
End rant. :-)
July 10th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
I always find it funny when some refers to “real people” — as opposed to all the cyborgs and inflatable dolls walking around. What must I do to qualify as a “real” person?
July 10th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
[...] John McCain advisor and former U.S. Senator Phil Gramm disparaged Americans as “a nation of whiners” in a “mental recession,” McCain had no choice but to publically [...]
July 10th, 2008 at 3:35 pm
I love it when well-to-do people from the comfort ans security of a secure vantage point extol their sage advice on us less “understanding” folks. You see, if only we had the economic breathing room “some” people had I might actually have the leisure time to afford myself these same assumptive opinions as mister Gramm. Or as they would say in the less posh parts of America. Walk a day in my shoes.
July 11th, 2008 at 7:13 am
Jeremy is right. When times get tough economically, Americans dont “whine,” they cling bitterly to religion and become gun-toting xenophobes.
July 11th, 2008 at 10:00 am
Does this remind anyone (old enough) of Carter’s malaise speech? It’s an old story for leaders to blame consumers when those leaders have no idea what they’re doing.