Why Our Politicians, Economists, and Media Are Failing Us: The Impact on People
The media is painting a stark picture of our current economic landscape. Homelessness rates in the USA alone have surged by 18 percent in a single year, hitting a record high of 770,000 individuals without stable housing. This trend is not unique to the US; homelessness is on the rise in major economies worldwide.
On the flip side, global corporate debt sales have skyrocketed to an unprecedented $8 trillion this year. Companies are taking advantage of high investor demand to ramp up their borrowing activities. Corporate bonds and leveraged loans have surged by over a third since 2023, reaching a total of $7.93 trillion. Big players like AbbVie and Home Depot are leveraging historically low borrowing costs relative to government debt.
What does this all mean? It’s clear that there’s a surplus of capital circulating within developed economies. Yet, this surplus isn’t making its way back to the government through taxation. Instead, these funds are fueling mergers, acquisitions, and unsustainable consumption patterns that harm our planet.
The real dilemma here is the misallocation of resources. Governments have the power to channel excess capital into social investments like affordable housing, but they often fall short. Meanwhile, the media applauds corporate borrowing without scrutinizing its long-term impacts, while criticizing government borrowing as a major undoing.
It’s evident that our current economic system prioritizes profit over people’s well-being. If we want to see meaningful change, we need our policymakers, media, and economists to realign their priorities. Failure to address these systemic issues only leads to more suffering among the most vulnerable in society.
In the words of Franklin D. Roosevelt, “The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, but whether we provide enough for those who have too little.” It’s time for a shift in mindset and a collective effort to create a more equitable and sustainable economic future.
