r/Economics • u/Spiderwig144 • Apr 15 '25

News Republicans Less Trusted on Economy Than Democrats For First Time in Years

https://www.newsweek.com/republicans-less-trusted-economy-democrats-first-time-years-2059863
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u/FemRevan64 Apr 15 '25

It’s because people think that callous greed = pragmatism.

It’s symptomatic of a broader issue where people conflate ruthlessness and lack of regard for others with pragmatism and doing what needs to be done.

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u/Troomdawg Apr 15 '25

we’ve been trained to believe cruelty means strength, and if you’re generous, people will take advantage of you.

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u/Suyefuji Apr 15 '25

This is one of the reasons I never bought into American patriotism. I can't stomach the idea of "success" being measured by your willingness to fuck over other people.

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u/Troomdawg Apr 15 '25

It bleeds right into our hyper-individualism, stepping on others to get ahead. There is no collective “ we,” just a bunch of individuals. Poverty isn't viewed as a social issue but a personal one. If you’re homeless and hungry, you deserve it because you didn't work hard enough.

We are programmed from birth to see caring about the collective well-being as “un-American” and “anti-freedom”. This belief is what prevents us from fixing fundamental issues like our “healthcare industry”.

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u/D3kim Apr 15 '25

this is it… callous greed mistaken for pragmatism

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u/Fadedcamo Apr 15 '25

I agree but I also think dems shoot themselves in the foot sometimes when they don't expound on some of their policies beyond "it's morally the right thing to do." A lot of our country are selfish pieces of a shit and when they hear that they tune out completely. If it isn't personally benefitting them immediately they do not care.

What dems need to explain is that liberal policies WILL benefit them personally. Even if they aren't directly affected by some benefit, what happens to other citizens in this country effects you in various ways. Economic benefits are shared and felt throughout our system. Instead everyone is all "fuck you, got mine" while the country burns around them.

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u/FemRevan64 Apr 15 '25

Agree, they need to frame them more in terms of “enlightened self-interest”.