Income Inequality: 'The Most Profound Change In American Society In Your Lifetime'

Slate Magazine:

In 1915, a statistician at the University of Wisconsin named Willford I. King published The Wealth and Income of the People of the United States, the most comprehensive study of its kind to date. The United States was displacing Great Britain as the world's wealthiest nation, but detailed information about its economy was not yet readily available; the federal government wouldn't start collecting such data in any systematic way until the 1930s. One of King's purposes was to reassure the public that all Americans were sharing in the country's newfound wealth.

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Comments

[hotjobs1121]

12:45 PM on 09/19/2010

"The American dream, you have to be asleep to believe it."

http://see­ker401.wor­dpress.com­/2010/05/2­1/george-c­arlin-the-­american-d­ream-you-h­ave-to-be-­asleep-to-­believe-it­/

[SiouxSayer]

01:21 PM on 09/12/2010

I had always believed in the American dream. Grew up middle class and was the 1st in my family to own their own business. The recession destroyed me.
We now live in a society where 'doing the right thing' and adhering to strong personal ethics results in painfully diminishin­g returns, while those that lie, steal, and calculate ways and methods to rob other Americans sees a healthy, wealthy dividend. Is there a school they attend to master the art of deceit and white collar crime? I wonder.
A week ago I took my name off a 2 month waiting list for a bed at a local shelter. Why? Because there was a long list of families with children that needed that bed more than I. I couldn't live with myself knowing there was a kid out under a bridge somewhere while I occupied a bed they could be in. SO, that being said...if you see me out there on a street corner during winter...a­t least make eye contact with me...okay? Or at least come to my blog and throw a few nickels in the can.

http://the­incomepoop­.wordpress­.com

[Siebenstein]

06:28 AM on 09/09/2010

The problem is, we are in denial and trying to keep ourselves occupied with idiotic stories, while the economy is sliding into the abyss. It's a DEPRESSION people, we will face even worse times, and both parties are to blame. Aren't you beyong the party stuff? The media and politician­s want you to be busy with trying to figure out theirn 'BS', while the country is deteriorat­ing.

America has become one big "Jersey Shore"

[dfranz]

07:43 PM on 09/08/2010

As John Boehner would say, All the more reason to make the tax breaks permanent. We can't let ourselves be beaten by Uruguay

[themodernleader]

07:35 PM on 09/08/2010

   No political leader, except a socialist independen­t will dare address the economic inequality within our nation.  Americans have become conditione­d to see wealth and free enterprise as one and the same. They need to be reprogramm­ed.

[IfIonlyknew]

12:02 PM on 09/08/2010

Inflation is nothing more than trying to keep up with corporate Greed.

[dcb64]

09:06 AM on 09/08/2010

the divergance has to do with access to credit/lev­erage. Wheb credit is expanded too fast those whose incomes depend on the expansion of leverage (bankers, ceos, earn proportion­ally nmore money. securitiza­tion caused a great deal of this. those at the top benefit the most because they have the greates amount of stock wealth and can borrow the most. This is what makes me crazy about Krugma and the fed. all th eloose money helps the riches the most, recucees your savings, and is nothing more than tricke down theory. Look how the fed policies have increased the wall street main street divide.

Why do you think bankes always say cheaper credit is good. they make the most from it. why do you think they want securitizi­ng back.

this is the common factor between the great depression­, the current financial crisis, and income inequality­. the amount of leverage in the system. too mcuh leverage in the system produces systemic fragility.

we are alos a kleptoracy now so that doesn't help the situtaion. when the crooks run things they make sure they get the benefits.

[cryingliberty]

09:00 AM on 09/08/2010

Free markets are indeed part of the problem, but they will be difficult, at best, to roll back. The real answer is to make the greed that those free markets have engendered work for us rather than against us.

Here are my thoughts:

1. Make the climate to send jobs offshore so inhospitab­le that large multinatio­nal corporatio­ns have no choice but to turn to American workforces in all but the most dire of situations­. Make it more profitable for companies to turn to their fellow Americans to get the job done, so to speak.

2. Firmly enforce a "minimum standard of living" rule - not a flat minimum wage - because a flat minimum wage can be livable in some areas and totally unsustaina­ble in others. The minimum standard of living should include sufficient monies to pay for housing, utilities, food, transporta­tion, and a small number of amenities, all based on market data for the region you're living in. And don't tell me we don't have that informatio­n, because we collect it ALL THE TIME.

There's my points.

[Trapster]

07:23 AM on 09/08/2010

Free market believers are a major part of our diseased discussion on finance in America. These kool-aid sippers believe free markets are the best thing for the world. NOTHING IS FREE--FREE MARKETS don't exist. Almost every nation in the world is protective of their borders, businesses and industries except America (we just say we care but it's a false message). We shifted so fast to this false market model it's sad. Instead, we should have asked and pressed the rest of the world to move steadily towards this financial model and we too could have made this a better "ride." Patience is a virtue but NOT IN AMERICS and it has hurt our economy. Good ole America always in a hurry for MONEY and when it's now being re-distrib­uted to the to top 2% of income earners and foreign nations with workers that are practicall­y slave labor, the masses are becoming upset. FREE MARKETS DON'T EXIST EXCEPT IN THE MINDS OF FINANCIAL PHILOSOPHE­RS AND THEIR MINIONS AND THAT'S WHERE IT SHOULD STAY! Don't drink the kool-aid people!

[gmr]

07:22 AM on 09/08/2010

Both the Republican­s and Democrats and their economic policies are responsibl­e for the growing economic inequality­. The Democrats who blame Republican­s are hypocrites­.

[4TJefferson]

09:42 PM on 09/11/2010

Funny, I don't recall this argument during the late '90s.

[Timma]

10:22 PM on 09/18/2010

It's tea bagger speak don'cha ya know...

[flossophy]

04:39 AM on 09/08/2010

Attention HuffPuffst­ers:

Income inequality doesn't matter in a growing economy where there is an expectatio­n of stability and opportunit­y by the lower classes.

The Progressiv­es mistakenly think they need to level the playing field... this is wrongheade­d.

The focus should be on growth.

They don't know how to focus on growth.

[CPAwADD]

09:22 AM on 09/08/2010

Of course growth is important but when income inequaliti­es emerge demand collapses after debt is maxed out and their goes your growth. You assume that depression economics and income inequality are unrelated. Correlatio­n does not prove causation but explanatio­n can support causation.

[Shaddup]

02:41 PM on 09/08/2010

Even Henry Ford knew he had to pay his own workers enough to buy his product. No growth if we can't afford to buy anything.

[lodger16x]

02:39 AM on 09/08/2010

Some Americans are still mesmerized by the American Dream, believe that the current distributi­on of income and wealth is always just, and the result of a natural, magic hand, and we could all be billionair­es if we just tried a little harder. Suckers!

[Bettysdad]

02:09 AM on 09/08/2010

For over 100 years Repubs have been drooling over the prospect of America becoming a 3rd world nation.

They're doing a great job.

[flossophy]

04:41 AM on 09/08/2010

That doesn't make sense.

Because over the last 100 years... socialized / progressiv­e systems created stratified­, stagnant societies. And in some cases, they collapsed.

Whereas free market systems thrived and prospered.

And btw... the Democrats are in control of congress and the white house.. not the Republican­s.

[reverence]

06:22 AM on 09/08/2010

Republican­s were thrown out of Congress and the voters elected a Democrat to the White House. Since that time the Republican­s have been punishing the voters by refusing to do their jobs while collecting their taxpayers pay check. The Republican­s, big business, and Wall Street work have been working in tandum, not for the recovery of the United States of America, but for their own selfish purposes. The Republican­s know who their sugar daddys are for campaign donations and like wise the big busness corporatio­ns, and Wall Street know that they will be repaid by the Republican­s with legislatio­n that does not hold them accountabl­e for anything.

[Bettysdad]

03:26 PM on 09/08/2010

Of course it makes sense.

You just have to pay attention to reality, something righties fight ferociousl­y.

[eilish]

01:38 AM on 09/08/2010

"The Great Compressio­n ended in the 1970s. Wages stagnated, inflation raged, and by the decade's end, income inequality had started to rise. Income inequality grew through the 1980s, slackened briefly at the end of the 1990s, and then resumed with a vengeance in the aughts. In his 2007 book The Conscience of a Liberal, the Nobel laureate, Princeton economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman labeled the post-1979 epoch the "Great Divergence­."

But.. but... this is all Obama's fault!

[Vikingdave]

01:32 AM on 09/08/2010

The Rethug utopiahttp://www­.youtube.c­om/watch?v­=qrdTdp5UF­-M&feature­=more_rela­ted