Fall Into The Gap
As I write this, the Dow has fallen below 9000 for the first time since 2003. Last year it was over 14000 for a short period.
I don't know exactly how this crisis is playing out, but I wouldn't be surprised to find that this will take a lot more money away from the rich than the poor. If it does, will the people who always complain about the growing gap between the rich and poor celebrate?
Okay, I know, they're not coldhearted, they don't want anyone to be hurt too much. So let's say that we could wave a magic wand and tomorrow the Dow will be back to 14000. This could massively increase the gap between the rich and poor, even though everyone would be better off. Once again, why wouldn't the gapsters oppose that?
I apologize if anyone thinks I'm exploiting a painful situation to make a point. But this is the argument the gapsters make, in good times or bad. Perhaps what they really want to say is that the rich get rich at the expense of the poor, but that's not about a gap, that's about the poor not doing well enough.
posted by LAGuy @ 12:34 AM
5 Comments:
It occurred to me yesterday that - intended or not - the bail out might just be the biggest redistribution of income in our history.
Perhaps in the same way as defense spending.....
Even if there are people who welcome what they see as justified redistribution of wealth, the financial meltdown isn't going to help with the most critical factor in crossing from the have nots to the haves -> advanced education.
It's not about education, it's not about any particular thing except the obsession with the gap.
So if it's the gap that's bad, then it doesn't matter how the gap is closed. If you want to bring up advanced education, if you want to close the gap, then it'd be just as good, and much easier, to deny it to the rich than try to give it to the poor. That may sound ridiculous, but almost every plan the people who talk about this growing gap support only questionably helps the poor, but usually start by taking something from the rich.
I've seen research results about how, even when their income has increased dramatically, dissatisfaction with income in emerging markets is associated much more closely to income inequalities than absolute income. In other words, however irrationally, people hate to see others doing much better than them. Whether you need to somehow address that factor or just accept it as a reality of human nature is another question altogether.
Post a Comment
<< Home