An impassioned manifesto calling for fairness and equality for all. Bernie Sanders has the distinction of being the longest serving independent senator in US congressional history. Being an independent politician clearly gives him the freedom to call it as he sees it. His grievances are fairly simple: American capitalism is off the charts, creating obscene inequalities in wealth. Large swathes of the country live in utter economic desperation – without healthcare and existing on starvation wages that have been stagnant for the last fifty years – while a miniscule section of the population have more money than they can ever hope to spend. By any standards, this is a societal bonfire awaiting a match. It's Okay to be Angry About Capitalism is more impassioned manifesto than economic critique. Readers worried about getting bogged down in statistics, data and national budgets, can relax. Sanders gives the meat and potatoes of vital issues confronting Americans. He tackles the inequities and inefficiencies of the healthcare system, the poorly performing education sector, the concentration of media ownership and the reasons why billionaires should not exist. Sanders examines the failures of the Democratic party, which has not done a good enough job of defending the rights of working class Americans. The Democrats have sided with the rich, rather than the poor. Furious working class Americans have deserted them in droves, and parked their votes with Republicans. Gross inequalities in wealth, according to Sanders, can go some way to explaining the success of the Republican Party, especially under Trump. Americans are fed up, but have nowhere to turn. The answers to these problems are all simple: tax the mega rich and stop giving tax breaks to behemoth corporations. And fix up campaign donation laws so American democracy can no longer be bought and traded. Should Australians read this book? If you want to see how bad things can get when wealth is concentrated and greed lauded. Reading this book will make you thankful for living in a country with free healthcare, compulsory voting, a well funded public broadcaster and fair elections, overseen by the independent Australian Electoral Commission. It's Okay to be Angry About Capitalism is a fiery, gutsy, passionate book that holds no punches. It's a reminder that the price of democracy, economic security and freedom is eternal vigilance. It's Okay to be Angry About Capitalism, by Bernie Sanders. Published by Allen Lane. $35 Comments are closed.
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