Is Income Inequality as American as Apple Pie?

[dmcowen674]

1-8-2013

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/income-inequality-american-apple-pie-095404318.html

Is Income Inequality as American as Apple Pie?

By Holly Ellyatt | CNBC

Income inequality has been on the rise for three decades in the United States, according to the Congressional Budget Office, with the gap between the "haves" and "have-nots" currently at its widest point since 1967.

The Congressional Budget Office reported in 2011 that between 1979 and 2007 the top 1 percent of households saw their income grow by 275 percent, while for the bottom 20 percent, income grew by just 20 percent. For the middle 60 percent of Americans, average incomes grew just under 40 percent.

 

[dmcowen674]

Go right on believing that Holly

 

[TerryMathews]

Go right on believing that Holly

Isn't the first sign of being crazy talking to yourself?

 

[Matt1970]

It's actually 4 decades, but then that flies in the face of everyone who likes to blame it on Reagan.

 

[diesbudt]

Isn't the first sign of being crazy talking to yourself?

No talking to oneself is natural.

Having a conversation with oneself is the first signs of lunacy.

 

[Texashiker]

The Congressional Budget Office reported in 2011 that between 1979 and 2007 the top 1 percent of households saw their income grow by 275 percent, while for the bottom 20 percent, income grew by just 20 percent. For the middle 60 percent of Americans, average incomes grew just under 40 percent.

Wages have been stagnated for 20 - 25 years. In a lot of fields wages have lost ground during that time.

Instead of using percentages of growth, which can be eroded by inflation, use minimum wage as a base line.

Between 1987 - 1991 I worked for a company whos top pay was 3.23 times minimum wage.

In 2004, top pay at that same company had slipped to only 2.4 times minimum wage.

This company is industrial based and does work all over the world.

Income Inequality is part of capitalism, but greed does not have to be part of the equation. How much money is enough? For some people no matter how much they make, it will never be enough.

 

[Engineer]

Related: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/income-disparity-debt-lead-risk-110038873.html

Debt and income disparity top two risks for next decade from over 1,000 experts.

 

[Engineer]

Income Inequality is part of capitalism, but greed does not have to be part of the equation. How much money is enough? For some people no matter how much they make, it will never be enough.

But it always will. No matter how much many people have, they will ALWAYS want more and don't really care who gets stomped on to get it.

 

[Texashiker]

But it always will. No matter how much many people have, they will ALWAYS want more and don't really care who gets stomped on to get it.

When I was in jr high and high school, the teachers told the students how communism was supposed to be this perfect system. We were told how under communism everyone was supposed to be treated equally.

The problem with communism, people got in way of the system working.

Then the teachers told the students how great capitalism is, and how everyone had an equal chance to make money.

The problem is, people are not taught how to make money. We are taught to learn a skill, get an education, and then go to work for someone else.

Working for someone else is not making money.

Part of the income inequality in America is directly related to what we have been taught about the job market.

Very few schools teach students "how" to make money. Instead of focusing on getting an education and going to work for someone, maybe society needs to teach future generations how to make money.

If people knew how to make money, a lot of our problems would fix themselves.

 

[Engineer]

EVERYONE can't be 100% money makers, although, it would even out the money distribution if it were possible.

 

[Matt1970]

When I was in jr high and high school, the teachers told the students how communism was supposed to be this perfect system. We were told how under communism everyone was supposed to be treated equally.

The problem with communism, people got in way of the system working.

Then the teachers told the students how great capitalism is, and how everyone had an equal chance to make money.

The problem is, people are not taught how to make money. We are taught to learn a skill, get an education, and then go to work for someone else.

Working for someone else is not making money.
Part of the income inequality in America is directly related to what we have been taught about the job market.

Very few schools teach students "how" to make money. Instead of focusing on getting an education and going to work for someone, maybe society needs to teach future generations how to make money.

If people knew how to make money, a lot of our problems would fix themselves.

Huh?

 

[Texashiker]

Huh?

My point exactly.

If you think working for someone is making money, you have it backwards.

Working for someone else earns you money, it does not make money.

 

[gevorg]

Income inequality can be heathly and motivating for the economy, the real problem though is the severe distribution of wealth to the top elite.

 

[EagleKeeper]

When everyone accelerates at the same rate; those that started faster will end up ahead.
If the percentage is the same, the larger will till end up ahead.

One has to increase their share of the pie in order to take advantage of the momentum.
Sitting around complaining that they are not making it will never allow one to make it.

 

[TerryMathews]

Income inequality can be heathly and motivating for the economy, the real problem though is the severe distribution of wealth to the top elite.

This is a flawed study as it assumes that wealth is a 0 sum game. It is not.

 

[ElFenix]

they always start at 1979 because the last couple years of the 70s were a post-war outlier. if you started during any point in the 50s, 60s, or even early 70s, those charts wouldn't look as bad.

 

[drebo]

But it always will. No matter how much many people have, they will ALWAYS want more and don't really care who gets stomped on to get it.

Doesn't that work both ways though?

The bottom doesn't really care to work hard for it and would rather see wealth confiscated and then gifted to them. IMO, that's worse.

 

[sm625]

The Think Tank Recipe for Income Redistribution (to the top 1%)

I'm not going to name any specific ones, since they were all in on it together. Heritage Foundation, American Enterprise Institute, Center for American Progress, etc, they are all a part of this. I'd call it a conspiracy, but really they do this hundreds if not thousands of times.

They took a concept that sounded good. Like a low top marginal tax rate. Everybody thinks that low taxes is good. So therefore a low top marginal tax rate is good. Then they loaded up all their media arms with that message and they pushed it out onto the masses, with a steady beat, for decades. That is why everyone thinks a low top marginal tax rate is good. No one even debates it, it is just accepted as some sort of axiom. I assure you it is no axiom.

You want a high top marginal tax rate. This forces what would be "excess income" to be rolled back into production, which leads to more jobs and more growth. When you study this for long enough you begin to understand why this tax rate was so high for so many decades. We need to gain back that common sense understanding, because it has been ripped and raped away from us by an incredibly powerful but small group of entrenched wealth with their shiny baubles and gold plated megaphones.

If people could just understand this one key dynamic they can unravel so much of what has gone wrong in the last 30 years.

 

[Matt1970]

There ya go. 85% of the richest of the rich have a college degrees. You were told to stay in school were you not? Now we point the finger at everyone but ourselves.

 

[Engineer]

There ya go. 85% of the richest of the rich have a college degrees. You were told to stay in school were you not? Now we point the finger at everyone but ourselves.

So if EVERYONE went to college, we would ALL be OK and thriving right now?

 

[Charles Kozierok]

85% of the richest of the rich have a college degrees.

Which, of course, proves absolutely nothing.

 

[Matt1970]

So if EVERYONE went to college, we would ALL be OK and thriving right now?

I never said everyone. However with better education comes better ways to make money and improve the economy.

 

[Texashiker]

I never said everyone. However with better education comes better ways to make money and improve the economy.

Society can not function without people to stock the shelves and pick up the trash.

 

[Engineer]

This is a flawed study as it assumes that wealth is a 0 sum game. It is not.

For the 99%, it nearly is (in terms of REAL dollars).

 

[DaveSimmons]

For the 99%, it nearly is (in terms of REAL dollars).

Except that the greedy "job creators" really have made the pie bigger for everyone over the centuries.

A person in the US living below the poverty line still often has better food and drink, clothing, health care, education, and access to information and entertainment than the minor nobles of a few centuries ago. They also live a much better life than the poor of the 18th century.

I'm not arguing against a little more redistribution of wealth, I'm just pointing out that people like Bill Gates have put a PC or two in most homes while gathering up their billions. So even if they have 99% of the wealth, the size and value of the remaining 1% has grown quite a bit over time.