We have been at this juncture before. Our history swings much like a Pendulum between periods during which the benefits of economic change are concentrated in fewer hands, and periods during which the middle class shares broadly in the nation's prosperity and grows to include many of the poor—between periods during which we see ourselves as “in it together,” and periods during which we view ourselves as being pretty much on our own. Roughly speaking, the first stage of modern American capitalism (1870—1929) was one of increasing concentration of income and wealth: the second stage (1947—1975), of more broadly shared prosperity: the third stage (1980- 2o10), of increasing concentration. It is vital for our future that we commence a fourth stage, in which broad-based prosperity is again the norm.
Robert B. Reich
