Doug Henwood wrote:
>
> Nathan Newman wrote:
>
> It was only with the ascent of Reagan that order was
> restored.
>
Yes and No. The capitalists certainly seemed unhappy during the inflation; but Paul Samuelson in a Newsweek column suggested that the inflation was a positive because it represented a semi-invisible cut in wages of a level which if direct would have caused "blood in the streets." And from a left political perspective, the oomph went out with (a) the failure of various "fight-back" programs by left groups during the 74-75 recession, (b) the final defeat of ERA, and (c) the erosion of struggles for quality of worklife (as at the Lordstown plant). So perhaps it would be best to say that the ascent of Reagan simply registered a restoration that had occurred in the mid-70s. You have argued that bad times are bad not good for the left, and the mid-70s slump sure illustrated that position.
Carrol