How is Wealth Distributed in the United States?
It is well known by both the political right and left and all in the middle, that a strong country is based on a strong middle class.
This video shows the ideal and the actual distribution of wealth in the United States.
If this video is true then we have some thinking to do.
The video talks about the ideal distribution of wealth. What we believe as Americans, is the true distribution of wealth and then it shows what it reports as the true distribution and it claims that it is a little known fact that both Republicans and Democrats, when asked about what the ideal wealth distribution should be, come up with surprisingly similar ideas about the the ideal distribution of wealth. What?!
So if this is true then why can’t we see eye to eye on anything? Maybe it is because
we have no real concept of the truth about the current distribution of wealth in this country.
It may be time for everyone on both sides to start questioning everything.
I believe this is the graph that is referred to in the video.
Americans Underestimate U.S. Wealth Inequality
NPR October 07, 2010The term wealth inequality refers to the unequal distribution of financial assets among a group of people. In the U.S., the top 20 percent of people have 85 percent of the wealth. Harvard professor Michael Norton, co-author of a forthcoming paper on misconceptions about wealth equality, talks to Steve Inskeep about what Americans think they know about wealth inequality. [READ MORE]
I particularly think this graph is interesting since it shows the house and senate as broken down by class. It shows that the top 1% vs the bottom 80% is represented in complete reverse to the numbers of persons in these two classes.
This graph is interesting taken from Facts about China: RICH, POOR & INEQUALITY (China Mike’s 100% verified, no B.S. China facts.
The graph shows and the part of the story talks about China wealth inequality and states that in the mid 2000s, China’s top 10% of the population controlled 45% of the wealth.
According to the video above, this is where the trend is leading in the United States. This could mean that in the not to distant future we may be able to finally compete with China in the manufacturing markets as we will have created a very cheap labor force of people below the poverty line or the government will have to step in to build a federal work program or bigger safety net or maybe even a hammock for the impoverished.
Makes you think.
Watch this Video on A Better Way To Fight Harmful Free Radicals
I see the problem. What’s the solution?
The solution is easy all you have to do is……. [To Be Continued]
Not sure there is an easy solution to this problem since conservatives and liberals refuse to come together for the sake of our country’s best interest.
The last time the economy crashed in 1929, it took till the 1953 before true growth was restored. At our current rate of growth and with the true unemployment numbers, we will have a similar recovery pattern of from 10 to 15 years and the story above tells us that with the inequality of wealth, it is possible that our middle class will not regain the momentum or status needed to put this country back on top.
I believe it will take massive changes to get us back to a vibrant middle class.
Starting with federal programs that put people back to work in rebuilding and even improving our infrastructure. This will get money flowing in the lower and middle classes again.
Also the 1% have to admit that if you have billions invested you will only make more and more and since the lower and middle classes have been told to and allowed to spend 125% of their monies, they will continue to become a burden to the nation as the debt continues to rise.
We are in a death spiral and our leaders need to start working together or fail us miserably.
It is true that we cannot compete with countries like China in manufacturing, because of cost, but when we realize that we do not have to, then we will be well on our way to becoming prosperous as manufacturers again.
Countries that have growing middle classes like China want high quality western and European goods, not the cheaper goods they make.
So if we decided to make quality stuff they really want we as a country will not have to compete. We can charge a premium.
Hope that helps…. What are your ideas?
Reblogged this on denniscoble.
Yikes, I knew the gap between the classes was getting worse, but not this bad. The recent fantastic health of the stock market has zero impact on hiring. Just because the 1 percent are prospering doesn’t mean they’ll hire more of the middle class and poor.
Lisa, I believe you are right about the markets. If this story is correct then over 50% of the stock market is owned by the 1% and only a small percentage is owned by anyone in the middle to lower classes. If trickle down worked this information would surely point to a large recovery, but it doesn’t. Also the stock market numbers seem to be more smoke and mirrors anymore. Stocks used to be based on company fundamentals, but now the formulas are heavily weighted toward emotion.
It used to be a major story when the market was up or down 200+ points… Now we just call that Wednesday.
This video was shut down by TED for awhile because of the message it portrayed, but they had to reinstate it due to public pressure. Successful businessman Nick Hanauer recorded this at a TED talk and it talks strongly and realistically about wealth distribution and who are the real job creators.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBx2Y5HhplI