Salon.com > Richard (R.J.) Eskow http://www.salon.com Sat, 18 May 2013 19:30:00 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Ten ways Americans have lost their freedom http://www.salon.com/2012/08/31/ten_ways_americans_have_lost_their_freedom/ http://www.salon.com/2012/08/31/ten_ways_americans_have_lost_their_freedom/#comments Fri, 31 Aug 2012 13:32:00 +0000 http://www.origin.railrode.net/?p=12998088 Our most fundamental rights, to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, are under assault. But the adversary is Big Wealth, not Big Government as conservatives like to claim. Consider:

AlterNet Life? The differences in life expectancy between wealthier and lower-income Americans are increasing, not decreasing.

Liberty? Digital corporations are assaulting our privacy, while banks trap us in indebtedness that approaches indentured servitude. The shrunken ranks of working Americans are being robbed of their essential liberties – including the right to use the bathroom.

The pursuit of happiness? Social mobility in the United States is dead. Career choices are increasingly limited. As for working hard and earning more, consider this: Between 1969 and 2008 the average US income went up by $11,684. How much of that went to the top 10? All of it. Income for the remaining 90 percent actually went down.

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