The Affordability Crisis
This is something we can all relate to.
Not everybody was concerned when abortion rights were diminished. Males, those outside the reproductive window… Birth control and abortions are critical to women of childbearing age, but everybody? No.
Immigration… Some people are concerned that illegal immigrants are taking away jobs. Then again, there are those living in states with many illegal immigrants who do the jobs citizens don’t want to. They are not that concerned with illegal immigration.
But high prices? Those affect us all!
Unless you’re rich. But the rich have taken an image hit. Look at Elon Musk and DOGE… Musk has been revealed to a myopic narcissist, someone hard to believe in.
As for the rest of the billionaires, the ultra-wealthy… There was a story in the “Wall Street Journal” today how they are able to make investments in private companies before they go public, reaping even more wealth.
“Inside the Invitation-Only Stock Market for the Wealthy – The buzziest private companies are being sold to a select few as the universe of stocks everyone else can invest in shrinks rapidly”
Free link: https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/private-stock-market-growth-bb71bde1?st=GRwgpS&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
And if you don’t think the wealthy are afraid of the hoi polloi whilst they rig the economic landscape to their advantage, you’re wearing blinders.
Income inequality has been burgeoning since the eighties. And all those holding the short end of the stick are told is how good they’ve got it, with smartphones and flat screen TVs…I mean how broke can you be? Can’t you just shut up and be happy?
You may not be aware of the fact that Gen Z brought down the government of Bulgaria:
“‘Did We Do That?’ Gen Z Protesters Help Tip Balance Against Bulgaria’s Leaders – Young Bulgarians turned out in protests that helped unseat their government. Whether that will translate into higher turnout in upcoming elections is up to them.”
Free link: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/12/world/europe/bulgaria-young-protesters-gen-z.html?unlocked_article_code=1.8k8.qcU_.QM9tU4Io971_&smid=url-share
Past is prologue. Gen Z brought down the governments in Nepal and Madagascar. And are testing the limits in Indonesia and Morocco.
The internet works everywhere. And the youngsters across the ocean are not radically different from those over here.
From the above NYT article:
“‘People who once scrolled through TikTok for entertainment are now using it to stay informed and become politically educated…'”
Fifteen years ago, change was fomented on Twitter. But that platform was deemed legitimate because the reporters for traditional news outlets were not only enamored of it, but addicted to it. They do not feel the same way about TikTok. Scratch a TikTok hater and you’ll be stunned to find out the person has never even been on the platform. Meaning Gen Z can operate there with impunity, in plain sight. Talk about a generation gap.
So, does the seizure of an oil tanker bother you? How about the National Security Strategy report beating up Europe and claiming that right wing patriots will be supported in the future? There’s an endless litany of actions that have segments of the public scratching their heads. But not all of the public.
Like the affordability crisis. Everybody needs to eat, everybody sees high prices. And then Donald Trump, poorly employing Steve Jobs’s reality distortion field, said there is no problem there is no affordability crisis, BECAUSE HE SAYS SO!
Hmm…
Once again, along with your smartphone and flat screen you’re supposed to be happy the stock market is burgeoning, even though you own no stock. When Trump lies it mostly rolls off of the shoulders of the public, but not this time.
And if you think this is a right versus left issue, Republican versus Democrat, you’re sorely mistaken.
The bottom line is we have a large portion of the public that is disaffected, that has no time for either party, thinks they’re both out of touch. Which is true. In hindsight, the lack of a primary and the anointment of Kamala Harris hurt the Democratic brand irreparably. As for the future… All we can see is the usual suspects, many of them aged, telling us to wait for the next election. Well, Gen Z can’t wait! Furthermore, for those who don’t believe in the system, is a free and fair election going to take place? Is the winner going to respond to their issues and problems?
Of course not.
What we are seeing is a generational war, which oldsters, Boomers and Gen-X’ers, cannot fathom. After all, they grew up hip! They wear their children’s clothing. Their parents were old farts, but not them. But the truth is today’s elders are just as bad as yesterday’s…decrying everything youngsters are into.
As for those youngsters…
Where are the good jobs paying good money such that you can move out of your parents’ domicile, never mind buy a house.
And then there’s the issue of AI… A lot of it paranoia, but the future of work once again looks like winners and losers, with very few winners.
The prospects of the youth are grim.
And for what reason should they have faith in the government? When RFK, Jr. enables a measles outbreak in South Carolina? Yes, a lot of the public is brain dead, but not all of them.
The revolt always starts with the educated, the elite the uninformed decry. Young thinkers with nothing to lose are the ones who will foment change. As for the oldsters? They’ll come along eventually, once they sense the momentum. But they don’t want to be on the front lines, they don’t want to sacrifice anything.
But prior to now, there has not been a universal sentiment, a rallying cry, but now there is. Grocery prices. Prices everywhere! People don’t want a long explanation of why beef prices are so high, they just know they’re stratospheric!
And when you can’t take it any longer, you tip over the table.
That’s what’s in the offing. Just because it hasn’t happened yet, that doesn’t mean it won’t happen at all.
Trump believes he’s winning. After all, he’s got all the branches of government under his thumb, even the Supreme Court. And everybody who works for him is afraid to jump the track, for fear they’ll be ostracized.
As for what happened in Indiana with gerrymandering, the news reports about Johnson’s crumbling support…that’s all inside baseball, interesting to the wonks, those addicted to the news, but not the general public.
Who is looking out for the general public?
And now health insurance rates are going to go through the roof. Sure, a lot of Gen Z will just go bare, but they’ll be aware of the costly alternative. Health insurance will be out of reach, just like the exotic automobiles the out of touch entertainers feature in their videos.
Did you think youngsters would take it forever? That they’d just go on somnambulantly indefinitely?
But the oldsters tell them everything is groovy. The music of today is just as good as that of yesterday. But where is the new Dylan coining aphorisms as pointed as:
“When you ain’t got nothing, you got nothing to lose.”
And there you have it. The outbreak will come from those who have nothing to lose, because they’ve got no assets.
Oldsters protesting in the streets can be ignored. But when the youth come out in droves…that will be notable. Just like Mamdani tying his opponents in knots by utilizing modern communication methods to triumph. Sure, Cuomo was far from a perfect candidate, but he thought it was all about money, he listened to the usual suspects, the same ones still in control of the Democratic party….
No, today you can do it for free! Just like you can create a song on your laptop and put it right up on Spotify, you can post on TikTok and rally the masses. Never has the proletariat had this much power, never!
We ae just waiting for the tipping point. The elephant stands until that one last piece of straw is placed on its back. A rubber band can be stretched only so far before it will break.
We all don’t need to fly private, vacation on Necker Island, but we do have to eat. We have daily expenses, from the gas in our car to our toothpaste… We are all consumers, our nation runs on consumption, without the public buying their wares, the billionaires would be broke!
And no one in power is acknowledging all this. Well, maybe Mamdani, but to most of the nation New York is a distant fantasyland, what happens there has no impact on their life.
But Congress is gridlocked. Trump acts with impunity. The Supreme Court rubber stamps the president’s actions and….
Meanwhile, ICE is a rogue force arresting people in the streets. It’s like we’re living in a police state. And unlike Bill Clinton, who said he felt our pain, Kristi Noem gives the middle finger and says “tough noogies!”
Once again, this is not really a right or left issue. When the government detaches from the people, that’s when the people revolt.
And Trump keeps pushing and life is getting harder and there’s no end in sight.
Something will break, it’s just a matter of what.
