The Cloward–Piven strategy: developed in 1966 by Americans Richard Cloward and Frances Fox Piven; 2 dangerous Americans who weakened America; The Cloward–Piven strategy focused on overloading the

by Paul Alexander

United States public welfare system in order to precipitate a crisis, which would ultimately lead to replacing the welfare system with a national system of "a guaranteed annual income"...

‘The Cloward-Piven Theory

The Cloward-Piven Theory is a strategy devised in the 1960s to successfully provide welfare and attempt to solve political problems. The main steps of this strategy are to:

  1. Overload a system

  2. Create mass panic and hysteria as the system is overloaded

  3. Oversee the destruction of the system

  4. Replace the former system with a new system

The Cloward-Piven Strategy of solving political problems can be compared to a forest fire. Although these fires result in widespread destruction, eventually a forest is regrown with young trees that are stronger than the old ones had been. Another comparison that may help illustrate the benefits of the Cloward-Piven Strategy is a ''scorched earth'' campaign. In this war strategy, leaders destroy everything they own in a given location, not just military installments or resources. The general idea is that without economic support, the enemy military will not be able to take advantage of their resources. Thus, the opposing army will survive because their enemies lack the ability to accumulate resources.

In a similar fashion, Cloward-Piven Strategy promotes the idea that as bureaucratic offices and programs are overloaded and fail, the government can replace them with something better. Their first target for capacity overload was the welfare system of the United States.’

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