The Riches of This Land

The Untold, True Story of America's Middle Class

De: Jim Tankersley

Narrado por: Jim Tankersley, Angelo Di Loreto

A vivid character-driven narrative, fused with important new economic and political reporting and research, that busts the myths about middle class decline and points the way to its revival.

For over a decade, Jim Tankersley has been on a journey to understand what the hell happened to the world's greatest middle-class success story -- the post-World-War-II boom that faded into decades of stagnation and frustration for American workers. In The Riches of This Land, Tankersley fuses the story of forgotten Americans-- struggling women and men who he met on his journey into the travails of the middle class-- with important new economic and political research, providing fresh understanding how to create a more widespread prosperity. He begins by unraveling the real mystery of the American economy since the 1970s - not where did the jobs go, but why haven't new and better ones been created to replace them.
His analysis begins with the revelation that women and minorities played a far more crucial role in building the post-war middle class than today's politicians typically acknowledge, and policies that have done nothing to address the structural shifts of the American economy have enabled a privileged few to capture nearly all the benefits of America's growing prosperity. Meanwhile, the "angry white men of Ohio" have been sold by Trump and his ilk a theory of the economy that is dangerously backward, one that pits them against immigrants, minorities, and women who should be their allies.
At the culmination of his journey, Tankersley lays out specific policy prescriptions and social undertakings that can begin moving the needle in the effort to make new and better jobs appear. By fostering an economy that opens new pathways for all workers to reach their full potential -- men and women, immigrant or native-born, regardless of race -- America can once again restore the upward flow of talent that can power growth and prosperity.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Jim Tankersley lays out a compelling argument...Deftly weaving firsthand examples with accessible discussions of economic research."—Washington Post

"But where Tankersley excels, as we face another its-the-economy-stupid election, is in parsing data on America's ailing middle class and leavening it with sympathetic portraits. As much as anything, he seeks to refute Trump's xenophobic, white-centered and misguided vision of how to make America great."—Los Angeles Times

"Tankersley is a well-intentioned liberal who provides a telling--if sad, painful--account of the erosion of the post-WW II American Dream."—New York Journal of Books

"Surprising and enlightening and timely. The Riches of This Land turns our understanding of why America once had an economy that delivered prosperity on its head. Only when black men, women of all races, and immigrants broke through blockades of oppression did their gains flow out to everyone. And, now, as Americans seek to find their way out from another devastating economic crisis, Tankersley exposes the true heroes of American prosperity - and why they are the source of our future renewal."
—Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award-winning and #1 New York Times bestselling author

"The Riches of This Land is that rare combination of compassionate narrative and trenchant economic analysis to examine the often-misunderstood history of the American middle class and prescribe policies to revive it. Through great storytelling and a firm grasp on economics, Jim Tankersley gives us powerful insight on the key economic question of our time."—David Wessel, director, Hutchins Center on Fiscal & Monetary Policy at the Brookings Institution

"Globalization, the movement of manufacturing from America to China, and the current pandemic have shredded the American middle class. If we are to ever regain an economy that works for all people--not just a sliver of the economic elite--we need to understand who made America great in the first place. In his brilliantly written The Riches of this Land, Jim Tankersley tells the fascinating stories of the men and women who were the force behind the widespread prosperity we once enjoyed and who can lead us back to the promised land."—Andy Stern, president emeritus, Service Employees International Union, and author of Raising the Floor

"A heartfelt, warm, and often moving book about working men and women and the troubles they face. It unites sharply observed stories with trenchant accounts of cutting-edge research to open up a conversation about systemic discrimination that could lay the foundation for an entirely new way of thinking about rebuilding both the working class and our economy."—Rebecca Henderson, John and Natty McArthur University Professor, Harvard University, and author of Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire

Provides A Viable Path to Regrowing the Middle Class

This book leverages the author’s knowledge, experience and old school journalist’s insights to present the true story of and formula for broad economic success in America. It delivers the obvious lesson that more unfettered opportunity that is genuinely available to all Americans is the only way to summon a rising economic tide. The book provides a both daunting and hopeful truth that the solution to widespread economic failings for non-elites in the US resides with The People and not simply in the well-meaning policies peddled by politicians of any stripe.

What is “middle-class”?

I’ve often wondered this, and Mr. Tankersley provides an answer, although not one I expected.

Filled with examples that real, middle-class people can relate to, this book provides some honest introspection into America’s core issues (economics, racism, classism), and how they’re related.

The story is told from a refreshingly human, non-partisan (though not apolitical) point of view, weaving facts with history in a way that brings economics back to reality.

This is an explanation of (and maybe antidote for) the wag-the-dog politics we are fed these days. I will certainly listen to this again as there are so many good points and ideas to absorb.

Interesting and Important

This is incredibly important information that America needs to know. It could help save us.

A great perspective unexplored

Jim Tankersley really hit this book out of the park. He gave America some hard pills to swallow. But it is filled w the remedies that America needs to rise again.

Game plan for Personal and Overall economy

When you are tired of hearing people diagnose the problems, when you are ready for a report of what actually worked backed by research -- start here.