Kerby Anderson

Even though Donald Trump is no longer on the national stage as president, populism appears to be here to stay. Populism can be defined as the reaction when ordinary people feel like they are being disregarded by elite groups. Many events over the last few weeks are feeding a populist perspective. Consider the topic I discussed yesterday. An average group of investors decided to buy stock of GameStop in order to hurt Wall Street hedge funds. A digital distribution platform banned their account. Another locked their online trading accounts. All seemed coordinated to help the elites in the hedge fund. At the White House press conference, a reporter asked for a response from the Biden administration. The press secretary started by talking about Janet Yellen becoming the first female Treasury Secretary. They didn’t want to talk about it because she was tied to those hedge funds. One headline writer had some fun at her expense by writing, “In Historic First, Janet Yellen Becomes First Female Treasury Secretary to Request Ethics Waiver for Wall Street Speaking Fees.” She received more than $800,000 in speaking fees from Citadel, a hedge fund connected to the GameStop saga. Another story I mentioned yesterday is the story of Google, Apple, and Amazon deplatforming Parler. We can also add the decision by Twitter and Facebook to block the New York Post story about Hunter Biden’s laptop. People were even blocked from talking about the story. So many average Americans feel like the political and economic system is rigged for the elites and against them. The populist perspective might wane if the elites begin to reform themselves and the institutions. But do you think this will happen any time soon? I don’t.