Anand Giridharadas

They're Republicans and Democrats in this network.

They work for different administrations.

They fight for different policies.

They don't look all the same on the surface, and they're not all the same.

But what they share in common is they are the cast of characters, and they wish to be the cast of characters running American life.

And in the play we're all watching...

One member of the cast may be yelling at another member of the cast.

And we all think, wow, what divisions.

But what they're really interested in is just making sure that they remain the cast.

And that we remain the audience.

And when people in this world fail, they are punished with promotion.

When Larry Summers helps deregulate the economy under Bill Clinton, and that sure as hell

results in a financial crisis down the road, he is punished by becoming Obama's economic advisor and helping figure out the crisis he helped cause.

When people help sell a bogus war in Iraq, they are punished with better professorships and television commentary gigs.

When people promise that technology is going to empower girls and women, it's going to empower poor people, it's going to liberate people, and then it becomes the most dramatic tool of consolidation we've ever seen, they are rewarded with book deals.

Right?

Many people listening to this will know that you don't get a lot of second chances.

That get fired from a job is really hard to get back in the labor market.

your car breaks down or you have an expense of that kind, and a whole bunch of things can spiral from there.

There's not a lot of forgiveness and mercy