This is where the 'Prejuduce and Power' part of the title is derived. Throughout the book he demonstrates how what he terms as 'racecraft', irrational and unsubstantiated beliefs based upon the concept of race, has been central to the formulation of economic and social policy throughout the history of the United States and has led to tendency for 'white' people in the US (who comprise a slight majority of all poor peopr people) to support policies that are aginst their own economic interests. Temin suggests that the corruption of the political process by the donor class and their lobbbyists has facilitated this transfer of income and wealth from the 'bottom' 80% to the top. The beneficiaries have been the top 20% (he defines the dual economy in terms of a 80:20 population split), and in particular the top 1%, 0.1%, 0.01% and ultimately the several dozen individuals who can accurately described as comprising the plutocracy. He shows how the once close link between wages and productivity has been broken since that time, leading to a complete stagnation in real income for the vast majority of US workers. This book provides a very good overview, using Lewis's dual economy model - developed to describe the economy of developing countries- of the growing income and wealth inequality that has been a hallmark of the US economy since the early 1970s.
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