Wake up, middle class!

In our capitalist society, you can always count on the wealthy to do whatever will put more money in their pockets. What I can't understand is why a large portion of working class Americans supports that effort.

Do any of you really believe that what is wrong with this country today is not that GE made a $14.2 billion profit last year and paid zero federal income taxes, but that teachers, garbage collectors, firefighters, social workers and others who work to keep our communities livable make too much money?

Sure, we need a wealthy class of entrepreneurs willing to risk capital to produce goods and services. But, we also need a healthy middle class with the ability to actually purchase those goods and services. Every society in the history of the world has had wealthy and powerful people. America is the greatest country in history because organized labor fought the wealthy and powerful for a piece of the economic pie for the middle class.

Wake up, middle class! Stop doing what the wealthy and powerful say and start doing what they do - support policies that put money in your pocket, not theirs.

Dave O'Brien

Cedar Rapids