How wide is the gap? Separate but unequal: Charts show growing rich-poor gap?

In theory, a gap between rich and poor is not a problem. The middle class in the US is fairly well off; in fact, it is itself wealthier than 90% of the world. Ask not for whom the bell tolls.

What the data show is that they're not getting wealthier, which is sad for reasons I'll get to in a second, but all that means that they can only afford the same things their parents could. It's very easy to be misled into thinking "they're not getting wealthier, and therefore because of inflation, they're worse off." The numbers take inflation into account: steady means steady.

Now, the wealth IS coming in; they're just not getting it. It's actually depressingly reminiscent of the picture Karl Marx described: the capitalist class arrogates all excess profits to itself. However, Marx went further: not only would the capitalist class arrogate all excess profits, but they would use that to squeeze everybody else into poverty.

It's the poverty, not the stagnation, that foments the revolution. The data do not show that slip, at least not yet. The middle class isn't reduced to subsistence.

If you expect a revolt against the rich, it would be coming from people who would be made, immediately, worse off by it. Ultimately, they might achieve a more equal distribution of wealth, but it won't make them wealthy, merely more comfortable. If the top 1% make 1 million, and you eat those people, their share would get split 99 ways, and your share would be $10k.

Not to be sneezed at, but still only a 25% raise over your present income. Now, being on the bubble like that does mean that you need to be careful. Stagnation of real income means that if you do anything to make it worse, it WILL turn into negative territory, and Marx tells you what happens down that road.

It means that "soak the rich" legislation is NOT inappropriate. If the US government is in debt, then it's manifestly fair to charge the debt to the people who have benefited most from what it did to be in debt. Asking the middle class to pay off that debt is unfair, ineffective, and potentially dangerous.

The rich can't pay off the debt on their own, either. Cuts will be made, and because of where the money is spent that will affect the middle class. All the more reason to abominate continuing tax cuts for the wealthy.

PamPerdue 57 months ago.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.