Abraham Maslow and the New American Search for Security

[Luis Gonzalez]

Abraham Maslow and the New American Search for Security

Seventeen years after asking whether insecurity could open the door to socialism, the question has become even more urgent in post-pandemic America.

Read it at The Last Wire.

The economy changed.

The pandemic changed expectations. Inflation reduced purchasing power. Housing became harder to reach. Millions of Americans began questioning whether the traditional path of work, sacrifice, and upward mobility still worked the way they were promised.

In 2009, I wrote about Abraham Maslow and the possibility that economic insecurity could create an opening for socialism in America.

In 2026, the debate has expanded.

The rise of movements such as the Democratic Socialists of America reflects a deeper question: what happens when people stop believing the ladder of opportunity still reaches the top?

The issue is not whether government should help people. A civilized society recognizes moments when assistance is necessary.

The question is whether assistance becomes a ladder back to independence or a permanent substitute for independence.

A safety net catches people when they fall.

It was never meant to become the foundation beneath an entire society.

The post-pandemic economy created more than financial pressure. It created a crisis of confidence.

When people lose faith in the climb, they begin looking for someone else to build the staircase.

Read it at The Last Wire today!

— Gonzo

[DefiantMassRINO]

Capitalism is failing because of corruption, primarily political corruption - The Uni-Party.

Representative Government and Capitalism are underpinned by accountability.

There is a general lack of accountability in our institutions and bureaucracies.

Those that have power have adopted a herd mentality - safety in numbers - to survive any attempts to be held accountable.  Whether someone in DC has a (R) or a (D) after their name, they will circle the wagons to protect their common interests - power, influence, wealth - from obtrusive outsiders like The Tea Party, The Freedom Caucus, MAGA, and Bernie Sanders & The DSA.

There were no real consequences - prison - for those responsible for 2008/2009 Financial Crisis because our Representatives and Senators were beneficiaries of the Banksters' lobbying efforts.

Both parties' House Reps and Senators have funded PAC's to influence their parties' state and district primaries to more favor DC Beltway Uni-Party Swamp Creatures to protect their current collective interest - more power, more influence, and more money.

Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wasserman Schultz (DNC Chair at the times) rigged the 2016 Dem Primary by scheduling the televised debates for days and time there were NFL playoff games scheduled.  Hillary got sideswiped by Obama in Iowa in 2008, and she was going to make damn sure that no outsider was going to cheat her out of her inevitable destiny to be America's first female President.

The fix was in - Hillary had an accomplice in DNC Chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz.  The DNC Primary process would be more of a inevitable coronation than a competitive primary.  The younger grassroots voters in the Dem Party really wanted Bernie Sanders to win a competitive Dem Primary, but, the Uni-Party would use their resources to prevent this from happening.  In the end, younger grassroots Dems felt betray, cheated, disrepected, and unappreciated by that old Dem hag, Hillary Clinton.

The 2008/2009 Financial Crisis started the schism of the GOP half of the Uni-Party.  The 2016 Dem Primary started the schism of the Dem half of the Uni-Party.

Collectivism does not resolve the lack of accountability problem in our Institutions.  It only makes it worse.  Accountability gets diffused by 'if everyone is responsible, then nobody is responsible'.  Failures are not attributed to individuals who made bad decisions, no, failures are attrbuted to outside enemies - the Collective is infallible and can only succeed if its given more power, influence, and wealth.

Math is not racist.  The math teacher may be racist.  The principal that provides the HR performance review of that teacher may be racist.  Members of the school committee that write school budgets may be racist.  Members of the City Council that approve the school budget may be racist.  The mayor than signs the budget may be racist.  The voters who elected the mayor, city council, and school committee, may be racists.  Racism may not be involved.  It could be laziness, incompetence, and corruption.  But, in the end, Math is the racist because resolving the issue requires impuning the whole beast that is modern bureaucratic governance.  Blame is deflected and redirected towards math to avoid holding those responsible to account.

No easy answers, but it starts by kicking those in positions of power for many years to the curb - to put the rest on notice that the parents of those students who underperform in math are pissed.

What's the 21st century equivalent of a mob with pitchforks and torches?

Each elective office is a brick in the wall.  To tear down the wall of corruption, incompetence, and laziness, we must do it brick by brick, office by office, election cycle by election cycle.

[Luis Gonzalez]

Capitalism is failing because of corruption, primarily political corruption - The Uni-Party.

Representative Government and Capitalism are underpinned by accountability.

There is a general lack of accountability in our institutions and bureaucracies.

Those that have power have adopted a herd mentality - safety in numbers - to survive any attempts to be held accountable.  Whether someone in DC has a (R) or a (D) after their name, they will circle the wagons to protect their common interests - power, influence, wealth - from obtrusive outsiders like The Tea Party, The Freedom Caucus, MAGA, and Bernie Sanders & The DSA.

There were no real consequences - prison - for those responsible for 2008/2009 Financial Crisis because our Representatives and Senators were beneficiaries of the Banksters' lobbying efforts.

Both parties' House Reps and Senators have funded PAC's to influence their parties' state and district primaries to more favor DC Beltway Uni-Party Swamp Creatures to protect their current collective interest - more power, more influence, and more money.

Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wasserman Schultz (DNC Chair at the times) rigged the 2016 Dem Primary by scheduling the televised debates for days and time there were NFL playoff games scheduled.  Hillary got sideswiped by Obama in Iowa in 2008, and she was going to make damn sure that no outsider was going to cheat her out of her inevitable destiny to be America's first female President.

The fix was in - Hillary had an accomplice in DNC Chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz.  The DNC Primary process would be more of a inevitable coronation than a competitive primary.  The younger grassroots voters in the Dem Party really wanted Bernie Sanders to win a competitive Dem Primary, but, the Uni-Party would use their resources to prevent this from happening.  In the end, younger grassroots Dems felt betray, cheated, disrepected, and unappreciated by that old Dem hag, Hillary Clinton.

The 2008/2009 Financial Crisis started the schism of the GOP half of the Uni-Party.  The 2016 Dem Primary started the schism of the Dem half of the Uni-Party.

Collectivism does not resolve the lack of accountability problem in our Institutions.  It only makes it worse.  Accountability gets diffused by 'if everyone is responsible, then nobody is responsible'.  Failures are not attributed to individuals who made bad decisions, no failures are attrbuted to outside enemies - the Collective is infallible and can only succeed if its given more power, influence, and wealth.

Math is not racist.  The math teacher may be racist.  The principal that provides the HR performance review of that teacher may be racist.  Members of the school committee that write school budgets may be racist.  Members of the City Council that approve the school budget may be racist.  The mayor than signs the budget may be racist.  The voters who elected the mayor, city council, and school committee, may be racists.  Racism may not be involved.  It could be laziness, incompetence, and corruption.  But, in the end, Math is the racist because resolving the issue requires impuning the whole beast that is modern bureaucratic governance.  Blame is deflected and redirected towards math to avoid holding those responsible to account.

No easy answers, but it starts by kicking those in positions of power for many years to the curb - to put the rest on notice that the parents of those students who underperform in math are pissed.

What's the 21st century equivalent of a mob with pitchforks and torches?

Each elective office is a brick in the wall.  To tear down the wall of corruption, incompetence, and laziness, we must do it brick by brick, office by office, election cycle by election cycle.

I think we are actually describing two parts of the same problem. Institutional failure creates distrust, and distrust creates the political conditions where people look for alternatives. My argument is not that people embrace socialism because they dislike freedom. It is that when people lose confidence that the existing system rewards effort and responsibility, they become more willing to trade independence for security. The question is whether the solution is rebuilding accountability or transferring more power to the same institutions people no longer trust.

[DefiantMassRINO]

The socialists lie, especially lies of omission.

The rubes aren't aware they will be trading their soon-to-be-lost freedoms for future illusions of security. 

Socialism is a fraud perpetrated by creative deception.  They make people scared to sell them false security.

Much like this scammer selling volcano insurance to Peter Griffin in Quahog, Rhode Island - where there are no volcanoes.  That's socialism.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNXw3RaRKBA