Quote:
Originally Posted by sendler
Wealth per GDP is an average. And the last 20 years have seen an accelerating increased concentration of the wealth accumulating at the top few percent with less going to the middle and bottom...
Everyone in the USA from about 60% and below makes less now than they did in 2000. The only saving feature is that globalization to areas of super cheap labor and reduced environmental regulations has reduced the price of gadgets and clothing so that the shrinking USA middle class can generally get by with less money. As long as they don't want a family or a car or a house or health care or secondary education or food.
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As if money spent by the 1% spontaneously bursts into flames the moment they purchase something, never to be spent again by the oppressed 99%. I guess everyone is volunteering their time and don't get paid.
The global GDP per capita has been rising throughout the income distribution. The fact that the more wealthy have benefited more is entirely expected, as that is a feature of nature, that the big get bigger at a faster rate.
You've already mentioned why we're better off than in 2000; there's hardly anyone that would rather be living in 2000 than now.
It might be a problem that the very wealthy are accumulating a greater portion of the wealth (the top 20% of households pay 87% of the federal taxes); but the problem isn't globalization or automation. What are we going to do, de-globalize (isolate) and form an angry mob to tear down factories? We'd then go back to expensive goods AND the economy in the US would be much worse since other countries would continue with global trade and automation.
I've already stated my idea for closing tax loopholes and reducing political corruption, which is to eliminate tax deductions entirely.
Pointing out that globalization and automation have contributed to increasing resource consumption is like pointing out that penicillin has increased resource consumption through reduced deaths by infection. We're not going to abandon any of those things.