In a democracy, however weak or poorly executed it is the people who decide.
Supporters of free-market capitalism have enormous power. They own the means of production. They own mass media. They influence politics through massive spending.
We have a David and Goliath situation, but sometimes a David does win. We at least have to proceed as if that is possible.
Propaganda can be defeated by revealing it as a lie. In the case of free-market capitalism a mountain of lies.
It is my belief that right-wing think tanks focused heavily on using language to conceal rather than illuminate. They came up with phrases like "right to work" and "people deserve to keep the money they earn" among others. Who can argue with those statements? There are even more subtle ways that thought is being molded.
This example prompted this thread:
http://rabble.ca/blogs/bloggers/alberta-diary/2018/01/tim-hortons-brew-h...
"This is not the first time the media have gotten worked up about the wrong numbers," observed Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives analyst Michal Rozworski in a thoughtful commentary on how the note was reported and what it actually said. "This is only one example of a recurring pattern of business-friendly bias in the media."
What does business-friendly mean? By calling it "business-friendly" it implies that support for minimum wage is anti-business.
Is the media business-friendly? Is no minimum wage better for business?