David Brooks (NY Times, A Reality-Based Economy, July 24) cherry-picks data to claim that today’s economic reality is going better than some politicians say.
But concern about the national economy is real.
- 64% of workers say the economy is on the wrong track,
- A staggering 79% believe the next generation will be worse off or no better off than they are, according to a recent poll.
They don’t buy the myth that highly-paid, high-tech jobs will replace jobs lost in manufacturing; nor that education and re-training are silver bullets. The fastest-growing jobs in the 21st century global economy are underpaid jobs that don’t require a college education.
Change to Win Chair Anna Burger sent the following letter to the editor in reply to Brooks' column.
Reality At Work
Unlike David Brooks’ string of unrelated factoids (A Reality-Based Economy, July 24), the facts of the new economy reveal a bleaker reality.
First, education is the not the silver-bullet solution Brooks claims. Only about 13 percent of future job openings will require a college degree. If everyone went to Harvard, we’d simply have Harvard-educated greeters at Wal-Mart.
Second, future jobs are less likely to come with benefits. Wages are not compensating for the shift of health care costs from employers to working families. Most workers live in fear of increasing health care costs and the loss of health benefits.
Third, 82 percent of workers, according to Lake Research Partners, agree that “no matter what you hear about the economy, working families are falling behind.” Maybe Brooks thinks workers are afflicted with a false consciousness, but it’s more likely that workers accurately assess the economic reality of their lives. The new populism is grounded in that reality.
Anna Burger
Chair, Change to Win
