The American economic and political system wasn’t always this broken. There was a time when a single income could support a family. There was a time when public education and healthcare were affordable for every other person. There was a time when upward mobility was more than a slogan.

But over the past several decades, this vision of shared prosperity and our values has been replaced by extreme inequality. It is further influenced by political polarization and corporate domination that force the majority to be more burdened under the manipulation of the elite and the dark corporates.

Can the system be fixed?

According to Paul L. Nevins in Private Affluence and Public Squalor, the answer isn’t simple—but it isn’t hopeless either.

Nevins lays bare how decades of policy choices. He began earnestly during the Reagan administration and systematically dismantled the safeguards that once protected working Americans. These choices include massive tax cuts for the wealthy, deregulation of industries, the weakening of labor unions, and privatization of public services. The result has been the transfer of power and wealth to a small elite while the public sphere—education, infrastructure, healthcare—crumbles.

But Nevins also argues that this outcome is not the result of inevitability or natural market forces. It results from deliberate political decisions, which means different decisions can be made.

Fixing the system begins with redefining what the American economy should serve. Currently, it functions to maximize private gain, especially for those at the top. If you were to reverse it, we would have to reverse the course. Therefore, we must shift our focus to public investment, economic justice, and shared prosperity and make it possible to articulate equality and justice for everyone, regardless of their race and gender.

One major step to do that is a progressive tax reform. As Nevins illustrates, the U.S. tax code has become a haven for the ultra-wealthy. Billionaires often pay lower effective tax rates than nurses, teachers, and other common or middle-class families. Closing corporate loopholes, reinstating higher marginal tax rates for the wealthy, and introducing a wealth tax are all concrete steps toward funding public needs and reducing inequality.

Another is revitalizing labor protections. For example, wages have stagnated for decades while corporate profits have soared. Restoring the right to organize, raising the federal minimum wage, and cracking down on union-busting tactics and biased notions would shift bargaining power back to workers, resulting in a fair wage and more productivity.

Universal healthcare is also crucial as America spends more on healthcare than any other developed nation. Yet millions remain uninsured or underinsured. A publicly funded healthcare system would not only improve outcomes but relieve millions of Americans from crushing medical debt.

Public education, too, must be rescued from privatization. Students in low-income districts deserve the same quality of education as those in wealthy suburbs. Investment in public schools, tuition-free college options, and student debt forgiveness are necessary to ensure that opportunity is not a privilege reserved for the rich.

Ultimately, fixing the system also means repairing our democracy and reconsidering our values for the betterment of the nation. The influence of money in politics, made worse by the Citizens United ruling, has allowed corporations and wealthy individuals to effectively buy policy outcomes. Campaign finance reform and limits on lobbying are essential to ensure government works for the people instead of the highest bidder.

In the end, Paul Nevins doesn’t sugarcoat the difficulty of this transformation. The current system is deeply entrenched, but he makes a compelling case that it can be dismantled if we, Americans, are willing to organize, demand change, and elect leaders who put us and our interests before profits.

The road ahead is long, but it’s not impassable. The system can be fixed, but only if we fight for it.

So, do you dare to change it? For more information and insight, please read Private Affluence and Public Squalor: Social Injustice and Economic Misery in America, available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CHPWC7PH.