20Jan: A Thought on Western Economics

I heard a mind altering podcast by a Chinese American one month ago. Grumpy, as he describes himself, portrayed the disparate economics of the two countries. America is a country run by oligarchs and billionaires where "trickle down economics" fails to provide basic welfare for all and workers are consigned to minimum wage and high prices at the market. 

meanwhile China is ruled by the Chairman with a Communist bent for shared wealth and the policing against private wealth creation. Although wages are modest, market prices are very cheap. Everything from rice to real estate is very affordable and health care is universal and evenly accessible. 

This obviously had me reflecting on Western existence, and if we ognoredcthis context and tried to imagine the symptoms that may be exhibited by a human being under extreme and chronic life stress. Here is a list that I developed:-

Problems with obesity, addiction and self harm.

Escapism through the overuse of alcohol and drugs (prescribed or otherwise).

Heavy use of stimulants such as coffee, caffeinated drinks, and electronic devices.  

Depression and reliance of prescription medications.  

Poor health such as heart disease, mental illness and cancer. 

Violence towards fellow man and self. 

A sense of bewilderment and confusion about the future. 

There will also be a range of social issues such as high unemployment, housing stress due to high prices, crimes of violence and theft. 

Interestingly, there will also be overconsumption, a compulsion to buy extra food, clothing, motor vehicles and houses as a compensation for the sense of living a purposeful less existence.  

Health and welfare services, which remain limited due to the impairment of private wealth accumulation through taxes, are chronically under resourced and over subscribed. 

Now you can witness a full functioning Western / capitalist economy being run as it is designed.