2 June

A graph that's a window into status, the core of all human life. Real wages only began to rise after the apocalyptic first half of the 20th century, when millions of ordinary workers were killed, meaning those left had significant extra bargaining power. This was also when the whole population began to own their own homes. The exact same thing happened after the Black Plague, centuries earlier. Only catastrophes bring real social change. Without the wars, Spanish Flu pandemic and Great Depression all in the space of 50 years, workers would never have achieved these gains. Most have been in rapid reverse in the 21st century, as catastrophe recedes. Also why the status quo was desperate to shut down Covid action, it was beginning to disrupt things too much, ordinary workers were benefiting. Some attribute these changes to activist social movements. Those movements only get any traction if they start with an already decimated status quo.