The Class Chasm
Dec 13th, 2007 at 5:50 pm by Susie
Jared Bernstein (h/t Lutton):
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) just updated their invaluable data series on income inequality and the results are startling. Income inequality among households, both before and after Federal taxes, grew more quickly over the last two years of the series, 2003-05, than over any other two-year period on record, back to 1979.
Over those two years, the growth of inequality transferred $400 billion dollars from the bottom 95% to the top 5%. That is, had the income distribution remained as it was in 2003, the income of each of the 109 million households in the bottom 95% would have been $3,660 higher in 2005.
If this is the ownership society at work, I think we need to have a serious talk with the owners.
“If this is the ownership society at work, I think we need to have a serious talk with the owners.”
I doubt, however, if the owners think they need to have a serious talk with you…
[…] December 13, 2007 Everything Will Be Ducky If We Just Make Rich People Richer Posted by John O under Political | Tags: 1928 great economy, income gap, NY Times, Suburban Guerilla, Susie Madrak | Along with the numbers that 21.8% of United States income is “earned” by 1% of our people, this is more humilating stuff for a nation that once prided itself on its robust middle class. […]
Any wonder we now rely on onerous gimmick mortgages and finance our car purchases over 5 years ?
If you race to the bottom , eventually you reach it . Now that the average Jane or Joe has increasingly less money , with which to buy or invest , the things we want to sell : be they , houses, cars or/and invested assets - they will increasingly reflect our Jane’s and joe’s ability to pay for them .
But to each their turn , the rich will be ,with some exceptions , the last affected -but they too shall be - as the ebbing tide lowers all boats . Such is the stuff of economic systems .
Ebbing tide my ass. This situation hasn’t arisen by devine decree! These changes are a direct result of regressive economic policies based on the obvious falsehood of conservative ideology and the wildly misnamed ‘free market.’ America has been sold a bill of goods by the people inflicting this destruction and swallowed it whole. Coincidence that most Americans believe in ghosts, Saddam had WMD’s and less regulation will make us all richer? Not.
This is an issue no one in or running for elected office will ever give more than lip service. They are all too beholden to that top 5% to finance their campaigns and stay in office.
Ron , “the ebbing tide” I refer to , is indeed the end result of the points you raise.
As you may know , back in the 60’s JFK gave a speech in which he sold a domestic economic stimulus package (classic Keynesian economics ) on the basis of it helping all economic classes . He used the analogy of a rising tide lift all boats to make the point . I simply reversed the model to fit the current situation ; the expression “ebbing tide” seems a metaphorically accurate assessment of our economic direction to me .
I do not differ one iota with your casual analysis; yours is stated more directly mine is implied .
Ron , “the ebbing tide” I refer to , is indeed the end result of the points you raise.
As you may know , back in the 60’s JFK gave a speech in which he sold a domestic economic stimulus package (classic Keynesian economics ) on the basis of it helping all economic classes . He used the analogy of a rising tide lifts all boats,to make the point . I simply reversed the model to fit the current situation ; the expression “ebbing tide” seems a metaphorically accurate assessment of our economic direction to me .
I do not differ one iota with your (causal )analysis; yours is stated more directly ,mine is implied .