"ueber-rich sitting on all the money".    Unfortunately I'd say this is an oversimplification.   There are real secular trends of employment changing the world which are resulting in jobs in rich countries migrating to lower-labor-cost countries.   This trend is quickening due to the Net--which is allowing even white-collar functions--and those jobs--to be farmed out of high-labor cost countries.

Those jobs are not coming back. But that is not obvious to all--and the unemployed or underemployed look for scapegoats.

In large part this trend is independent of politics- but Palin and others on the Right can and will use it--and flog government as the cause, regardless of the illogic of this.   Also, protectionism is no solution.

Many of the jobs which are left pay worse than those lost--except for those which by their nature cannot be transferred.

It's an open question how much help the "green jobs" promoted by the Obama administration can counter this trend.