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The Dumbest Theory as to Why Harris Lost in 2024
Ivy League hypocrisy
Recently, the corporate algorithms have been pushing onto me the theoretical stylings of one Michael Sandel. He’s on the faculty of an Ivy League institution, so his theories and statements are promulgated without question.
The corporate media is eagerly touting Sandel’s theory about why Kamala Harris lost the 2024 election. Their eagerness is partly out of joy at bashing Harris and partly because Sandel's theory feeds the antiworker class-warfare narrative of which the wealthy are so fond.
The Theory
Sandel’s theory, presented in multiple interviews to multiple media outlets, has three premises. The first two are correct premises — that the US is suffering from long-term trends of increasing economic inequality and decreasing opportunities for social mobility. Sandel says these two trends are unraveling many Americans’ sense of belonging and pride. These are true social realities, though the evidence shows these two trends have been in place since the early 1980s. Robert D. Putnam back in 2000 presented a good exploration of these trends in his book, Bowling Alone.
The problem is Sandel’s third premise because it’s totally bizarre. He claims that the Democratic Party has alienated the working class by insisting that…