Quote:
Originally posted by taxwonk
The truth is that there is such a wide (and growing) gap between the haves and the have-nots in this country that there is hardly anything left of the middle class any more. The middle class used to be the cops and the office managers, and the average lawyers, who could afford a modest house and maybe two cars, one used, and possibly a two-week vacation every year. These people are almost all gone now. They haven't disappeared completely, but they are shrinking rapidly as a demographic.
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I have been hearing this every year since Reagan got elected in 1980. I don't think it is true. I think it is just a political spin used by the left to still find criticism when the economy is growing. A way to find fault with capitalism when it is succeeding. The trick is like this: If I make $100 a year and you make $1000 dollars a year and each of our incomes goes up by ten percent then I make $110 and you make a 1100 a year. The gap between us has widened. The wealthier the economy the wider the gaps just because you are dealing with bigger numbers.
When they use these stats it implies that the rich are getting rich and the poor are getting poorer. That is not the case. The only stat that really has any significance is look to are every quartile of income and see if people are getting better off. As long as the prospects of the bottom fourth are getting better who cares how much the rich are getting. That is just political exploitation of people's envy.
As long as everyones incomes are rising who cares how much the rich are getting. Unless, of course, you can figure out a way to tax them without hampering growth so you can decrease the tax burden on the bottom half.
