By Rachel Goldfarb, originally published at Next New Deal
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The Offline Wage Wars of Silicon Valley (Next City)
Roosevelt Institute | Pipeline Fellow Nona Willis Aronowitz writes on the fight to increase the minimum wage in San Jose, where poverty exists in sharp contrast to Silicon Valley successes. This piece was published on a pay-to-read platform, and I've linked to an excerpt.
Inequality is Hindering Economic Growth (Baltimore Sun)
Roosevelt Institute | Campus Network founder Nate Loewentheil and Jacob Hacker denounce the "Big Trade-Off" between equality and efficiency. Economic inequality prevents the growth our economy needs, so people and poverty must come before the deficit.
Why the Anger? (Robert Reich)
Robert Reich suggests that income inequality is causing the polarization of our political system. People have many good reasons to be angry, from falling wages to government bailouts, but he fears that anger is pitting Americans against the wrong targets.
Your Mortgage Documents are Fake! (Salon)
David Dayen reports on a newly unsealed lawsuit, which reveals that banks faked documents to establish ownership of mortgages when trying to foreclose. He questions whether banks should control mortgages when they can't track who owns which loan
Lobbyist Secretly Wrote House Dems' Letter Urging Weaker Investor Protections (MoJo)
Erika Eichelberger reports on a letter to the Department of Labor signed by 32 Democrats opposing new regulations on retirement advisors and written by a financial services lobbyist. These regulations are meant to protect the populations the signatories represent.
The Return of One of the GOP's Dumbest Ideas (TAP)
Paul Waldman finds it strange that when proponents of the balanced budget amendment explain why the deficit is so bad, they claim it's due to draconian budget cuts that will be needed one day. Apparently, that means we should make those cuts today instead.
Remember the JOBS Act? (U.S. News and World Report)
Pat Garofolo thinks that any bipartisan jobs plan should be carefully scrutinized, considering what we got last time. The JOBS Act, signed in April 2012, reduces reporting requirements, so we're seeing more fraud and shell companies, but no new jobs.
The Workers Defense Project, a Union in Spirit (NYT)
Steven Greenhouse looks at the successes of the Workers Defense Project, which is organizing workers outside the traditional union setting for basics like workers' compensation. Their model is seen as a potential future for organized labor.