I would like to point out some purely demographic issues that tend to obscure analyses of the economic shifts in contemporary society. My original post was calling atttention to the political polarization of our society (not just Canada's), and I thing you are cognizant of how much this has to do with economics.

Most of us, and most of the people we know, are part of the baby boom generation. We were a numerically dominant cohort that appeared on the national scene at a time when post war prosperity was breaking out all over. As the economy soared, we matured. And we prospered, both because the economy was experiencing unprecedented growth and because we were approaching our prime, our peak earning years. We were becoming richer because we were applying our educations to our careers and our professional skills and experience were growing as we matured. The boomers prospered because people in their 20s, 30s and 40s are moving naturally up the career ladder. Its the time of life when most people are improving their income, regardless of the economy.

But now the boomers are getting ready to retire, and their children are where they were in the 60s, 70s and 80s, but without the benefit of the postwar boom. These kids are coming into a world of diminished expectations and economic decline. Forget for a moment "who's at fault", just consider how are these new conditions are going to manifest themselves economically and politically, when superimposed on the general configuration as outlined below.

The middle class has always feared the lower classes, they see them as greedy and grasping rivals who want to take what they've spent a lifetime earning. They middle class also resents the upper classes, and sees them as an obstacle to their advancement, but they also aspire to their success and position and therefore they are hesitant to take them on politically. They identify culturally with the upper classes. The upper classes, of course, see the middle class as gauche and nouveau riche, and view them pretty much the way the middle sees the lower. All the classes believe the other two are in cahoots against them.

"Classes" of course, are not monolithic blocs, there is a smooth and continuous spectrum, but the terms upper, middle, and lower are valid and useful operational definitions. After all, if you ask most Americans what class they belong to, they almost invariably answer "middle". Rightly or wrongly, they believe there are three classes, and none want to admit they are lower class losers or upper class snobs. The middle class sees itself as the source of virtue. Everyone wants to join up, but it seems to be shrinking.