October 20, 2002
7:11 PM Subscribe
Hello, Third World USA: According to the most recent US Gov. Census Data, the bottom 80% of Americans steadily lost ground since 1967 relative to the top 20%. The US income graph now resembles an L Curve. What does this mean for American Democracy? - Well, not one of the 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives has a son or a daughter on active duty in the enlisted ranks of this nation's military.
This post was deleted for the following reason:
Well, I started reading about income distribution, and then somebody switched the channel to military service.
What's your point, troutfishing? Oh, wait. Let me guess. The rich are evil?
On preview, I see I'm not the only confused one.
posted by hama7 at 7:38 PM on October 20, 2002
What's your point, troutfishing? Oh, wait. Let me guess. The rich are evil?
On preview, I see I'm not the only confused one.
posted by hama7 at 7:38 PM on October 20, 2002
OK - for all of you MEFIers tickled and outraged by Ed's post on the Death of the US middle Class, here are some official (and some less official) stats. My claim that "the bottom 80% of Americans steadily lost ground since 1967 relative to the top 20%" is supported by the US Census Bureau, on page 16 of the PDF file, "Money Income In the US - 2000".
The L Curve is far more graphically descriptive, though
I was going to call this post "slouching towards Brazil", but I didn't want to demean what's best about the US -and what's best about Brazil- by the comparison. I'm not aware, however, that gangs of thieving street children have been machine gunned - execution style - in their sleep by police and shopkeeper-paid assasins.
By the way, there is some (empirical) research arguing for a correlation between unequal income distribution and political instability. The IMF concurs with this view. (See also) I would suggest that the US 2000 Presidential Election was the beginning, for the US, of a period of inequality driven political instablity -- that is, if we continue to refuse to acknowledge this correlation.
posted by troutfishing at 7:55 PM on October 20, 2002
The L Curve is far more graphically descriptive, though
I was going to call this post "slouching towards Brazil", but I didn't want to demean what's best about the US -and what's best about Brazil- by the comparison. I'm not aware, however, that gangs of thieving street children have been machine gunned - execution style - in their sleep by police and shopkeeper-paid assasins.
By the way, there is some (empirical) research arguing for a correlation between unequal income distribution and political instability. The IMF concurs with this view. (See also) I would suggest that the US 2000 Presidential Election was the beginning, for the US, of a period of inequality driven political instablity -- that is, if we continue to refuse to acknowledge this correlation.
posted by troutfishing at 7:55 PM on October 20, 2002
« Older Newsweek previews Cobain journals. | MoveOn PAC. Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by machaus at 7:38 PM on October 20, 2002