Just in time for the 2000 election comes a fascinating look at how the Democrats became the party of Wall Street and how everyone became investors--and what these two things mean in the long run.

Using a cab driver as a straw man is one of the oldest journalistic tricks in the book. For decades, writers parachuting into new territory with the intent of reporting on a certain individual, a sports team, or a trend have used a conversation with a hack driver as a dramatic device. Aside from sparing the writer the effort of having to seek out and interview an authentic working- class individual, talking shop with a cabbie lends a certain blue-collar authenticity to even the most elitist reporter. If the salt-of-the-earth cab drivers are talking about a topic, the logic goes, it must merit our attention -- no matter what the subject matter.