Economy / Business - OtherWords

Remembering Barbara Ehrenreich, Who Exposed the ‘Cult of Positive Thinking’

The late Nickel and Dimed author laid bare the “positive thinking” industry that put a smiley face on inequality.

Both used to be good jobs, but attacks by ideologues and greedy corporate bosses have pulled the rug out.

Cities and states are experimenting with “baby bonds” to narrow America’s yawning opportunity divide.

Too many lawmakers are happy to dole out subsidies for the rich and corporations while resisting pay increases for educators.

I borrowed modestly, worked on campus, and still had to skip meals to make loan payments — and I was one of the lucky ones.

One Chick-fil-A store tried paying drive-through workers in chicken sandwiches. It didn’t go over well.

We can have a strong job market and lower inflation — and we don’t need more painful interest rate hikes to do it.

But it needs to be a first step, not the last.

Real and lasting economic opportunities for Black families will come only through a serious national reckoning on race.

The OtherWords founder was a small-city mayor who traveled the world, an Army veteran who hated war, and above all a devoted citizen.