An important essay on a failing democracy ...

This is a long read, but important concepts are discussed:

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/03/america-is-not-a-democracy/550931/

Not exactly an optimistic view of the current world in which we live.

The effectivness of "trickle-down" economics ...

... has never been demonstrated in the real world.  Read on:

http://prospect.org/trickle-downers