Public Lecture TODAY - Tuesday 18th October at 7pm, the Blandijn in Auditorium C, Ugent
TRUMP v CLINTON - All welcome

As historians, political and cultural commentators we spend a considerable amount of time healthily disputing the claims of others in terms of cause, effect and the subsequent outcome of events that underpin our World. But this continual intellectual competition seems very muted over the re-entry of the above. However, where discord still sits is in why this 'New Age of Extremes' has occurred within a modern international system that apparently was constructed, reconfigured and now managed in a way that looks to tease and squeeze out the extremes of society. In other words, why is our collection of national, supranational and international organisations that look to provide a more reasoned if not fairer distribution of care, development and wealth throughout the World failing us? 

To best consider this question we turn to domestic America since at present there sits evidence as to our international malaise as the three main ingredients that offer us extremism - inequality, ignorance and inhumanity - have not only bubbled to the surface but are now in danger of materially changing the face of American society. 

The polarisation of the 'economic haves' verses the 'have nots' continues a pace in the US. Income differences have become so pronounced that the nation's top 10 percent now average nearly nine times as much income as the bottom 90 percent. Americans in the top 1 percent are stunningly higher. They average over 38 times more income than the bottom 90 percent. But even this disparity pales into insignificance when you compare US's top 0.1 percent with everyone else. This economic elite are taking in over 184 times the income of the bottom 90 percent. Critically, these frightening figures translate from a quantitative reading to a large qualitative effect. Since this economic disconnect is not just played out in Wall Street but on Main Street via the societal issues of  housing, health, education and employment. Up until the 1970's the notion and acceptance of a mixed economy as it implies offered a rough balance within private and public economic activity and therefore, acted as a 'regulator or corrector' so that the differentials between the poorest and the richest did not lose sight of each other; the growing American middle classes acted as the economic and aspirational bridge between these two extreme groups. But the 1980's changed all that as neo-liberal economics was 'adopted' to reflex the growing opportunities created by globalisation. Reagan and Thatcher were determined to leave their socio-economic footprint in the sand - it has yet to be washed away.

As US society began to be stretched throughout the 1990's because of the adoption of this free wheeling economic understanding spaces began to appear in the political spectrum as politicians failed to keep up with the changing societal condition. The failure of government to provide the American working classes with any real advancement in their earnings during a period spanning 30 years, was masked to many outsiders by the headline grabbing events of the End of the Cold War, the First Iraqi War, and of course 9/11. But to keen observers of US domestic well-being Bill Clinton's balancing of the federal budget in the mid nineties was just wallpapering over the real effect that a no holds barred 'free market' was having on the real economy. As Wall Street got grossly richer Main Street started to quiver but no one was really looking and listening. Then 2008 struck.

The economic meltdown that resulted from this largely unregulated economic system pushed the federal government into supporting the very same banks and financial institutions that had caused this disaster in the first place. Public money was now being used to bail out private profligacy. In other words, tax dollars from the working classes were being used to underpin and shore up high earners. The subsequent damage to Main Street has been extensive as many lost their jobs only to be re-employed on a small percentage of their original wage. At present official unemployment figures in the US sit at around 5% but this number disguises much. Many in the US do not register unemployed because there are few benefits or welfare support. The number of self employed in the US now sits at 3 in every 10 jobs while many exist in a low wage economy that fails to pay their bills. 47 million people now live in poverty with 44% of all homeless actually having jobs.  No wonder many look to support extreme left and right wing understanding since the centre ground has effectively left them for dead. No wonder violence in the towns and cities is in the ascendency. No wonder the use and abuse of race is once again being utilised and manipulated as a indicator of societal breakdown. 

Both Trump and Clinton are representations, illustrations and products of this disintegrating domestic condition. Why else would the US listen to let alone vote for two of the most unpopular and damaged political figures in American contemporary history! Trump attempts to represent the victims of this unfair and unjust economic system. Many are frightened that they have no future so they cling onto a man whose grasp of reality seems wishful. While Clinton represents the middle classes who are also frightened of falling into the very same disadvantaged and largely disenfranchised group that Trump looks to support. Both candidates are good at feeding into this notion of 'victim-hood' - the people (the outsiders) who are to blame for this growing crisis. But of course the truth sits closer to home, as the very same economic system that made Trump a billionaire and allows Clinton to sit very comfortably in amongst her property portfolio is the real igniter of this New Age of Extremes.        

KK

Public Lecture TODAY Tuesday 18th October at 7pm, the Blandijn in Auditorium C, Ugent
TRUMP v CLINTON - All welcome