Building that bridge to the 19th century

November 15, 2004

Bill Clinton talked about building a bridge to the 21st century. Here in the 21st century, George W. Bush is working to build a bridge back to the 19th century.

Paul Krugman notes that Bush is not a conservative but a radical: "[Bush is] the leader of a coalition that deeply dislikes America as it is. Part of that coalition wants to tear down the legacy of Franklin Roosevelt, eviscerating Social Security and, eventually, Medicare." No Surrender

But, the Bush coalition seeks not only to roll back the achievements of Franklin Roosevelt, but the progressive era reforms of Theodore Roosevelt and return to unregulated robber baron capitalism. Some of TR's biggest achievements were in creating the national parks and protecting the environment. Then, conservation was conservative. Today, Bush cronies seek to loot the national park system for private gain and roll back clean air regulations.

In the New Yorker, James Surowiecki discusses how this shifts risk allocation from a collective risk-spreading approach back to rugged individualism: The Risk Society