Saturday, May 14, 2016

Listen, Liberal: "The 1 Book Every Entrepreneur Should Read in 2016."

"As Frank explains it, we have two political parties that differ on social issues but which are in near total agreement on economic policy and together are pursuing strategies that shift wealth upward to the professional class, while stripping blue-collar or white-collar workers of job security and the ability to earn a living wage."

Given the tone of recent social media chats, this post from earlier in the week bears repeating.

Robert Reich and Thomas Frank connect the dots between Hillary Clinton, Adam Dickey and Jeff Gahan.

Concurrently, Robert Reich posted the following at his Facebook account. I've highlighted the passage that most clearly explains Jeff Gahan's local governing preferences, and his prioritization to date. Union jobs at Pillsbury were lost, with nothing to replace them -- but Gahan's suburban Eastridge voters wanted parks.

When even Inc. gets it, the wisdom of a close friend is verified, because speaking locally, "Real D's could meet comfortably at Coqui's." Lots of you urge me to look past this, and concentrate on the Democratic Party as bulwark against Trumpism, a saga played out in far-off places.

I'd rather expose the Democratic rot right here at home. When one of them spots me a half-block away and abruptly turns into the alley, I feel like I've accomplished something real.

The 1 Book Every Entrepreneur Should Read in 2016: If the rise of Trump blindsided you, it's because you didn't read this book, by Geoffrey James (Inc.)

Every year I read dozens of books and provide you with a list of the "best of the best" motivational books, sales and marketing books, and management books. Many of the books I recommend (as well as those recommended by various pundits and billionaires) build on familiar themes, like entrepreneurship and leadership.

Once in a blue moon, I run across a book that forces me to think, that challenges me to re-examine my core beliefs about business and politics. The book in this case is Thomas Frank's Listen, Liberal: Or, What Ever Happened to the Party of the People. It's an eye-opener and a must-read for entrepreneurs who want to understand what's happening this year in politics and business.

Contrary to what the title seems to imply, the book is not a conservative take-down of the liberal viewpoint. In fact, conservatives are barely mentioned. Instead, it's an expose of how the Democratic party realigned itself with the professional class (that would be the elites like us) and threw the working class under the bus.

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