I think the failures of hands-off capitalism are becoming more apparent by the day. Americans do not trust their government because it has failed them in privatizing to industry and lobbyists, rather than protecting the 99%. I'm not saying that centralized planning works, but I am definitely a strong proponent of regulations and holding back the race-to-the-bottom nature of unbridled capitalism. And the more time we spend watching the US-style conservatism unfold, the more Marx seems a genius.
The costs of this sort of conservatism are mounting: record-low tax rates for the rich, leading to record deficits, which only get paid for out of the pocket of the working man (cut our SS and Medicare!). Perhaps our benefits are too great, but then so is their corporate graft in the form of no-bid contracts, tax incentives to take jobs overseas, as well as skewed tax breaks given at the state and local levels, obvious moral hazards created by the government for industry (e.g., the banking regulations that led to our financial collapse), lax enforcement of securities fraud, and on and on and on and on...
If capitalists are allowed to "run amok" you will continue to see labor getting shafted. That is clearly, unequivocally and factually the case for the past forty years now (for specific wage vs productivity growth changes, see links in this column). And it only looks to get worse once robots take over 90% of all jobs.
I don't know all the answers, but the current form of so-called liberalism is dead. The Democratic Party lost its way long ago and although it continues to at least fight the forces of plutocracy it has sold its soul to them in many ways. If they can't look to grow a spine and shake free of the shackles of their big-money interests, a revolt of the proles is all but certain.
