Ronald Reagan Was a Bastard

Conservatives over the weekend celebrated what would have been the 100th Birthday of Ronald Reagan the 40th President of the United States. Reagan is a God to Conservatives who speak of him as if he was greatest man to walk the earth but in reality, Ronald Wilson Reagan was an actor turned corporate spokesman turned politician.

Reagan was undeniably an agent of corporate America. Under Reagan, the wealth gap between the rich and the working class grew to then record levels, which were a direct result of his trickle-down voodoo economics, which worked on the principle that if you, allowed the wealthy to keep their huge profits by reducing their taxes that they in turn would invest in America by creating jobs.

Predictably, it did not work out that way and his policies created record debt as he increased spending on Defense while cutting taxes for the rich while cutting social services for the poor. The so-called economic "Boom" under Reagan was artificial wealth based on leveraging future earnings from consumers in the form of new credit lending since consumers had little real wealth themselves to spend as wages dropped continually during Reagan's years. This was mostly a result of gutting manufacturing, which played a major role in destroying the working class. Through consumerism propaganda, Americans were convinced to triple their debt and when they became unable to pay back their loans, the biggest collapse in U.S. financial history since the great depression followed by a plunge in the stock market and record unemployment.

He is credited with bringing down the Soviet Union but trying to keep up with the astronomical Defense Spending of the United States is what caused their financial collapse and break up. Reagan also supported terrorism across the globe like the Arms for Hostages deals he made with a group in Iran as well as the training and support of death squads in South America. During his administration, a crack epidemic broke out in the cities because in exchange for clearing the way for illegal arms to right wing groups in South America, drug cartels were given the freedom to flood America with cocaine. Conservatives can try to white wash Reagan’s legacy but his is one of suffering, death and destruction.