StartFragment
The use of anecdotal evidence to prove or disprove the
effects of economic inequality and income mobility in the United States is
absurd. Of course, I am speaking more towards those who clearly see nothing
wrong with the current inequality in the US because their parents, and their
friends’ parents, were lucky enough to have the chance to better themselves through hard work and persistence.
Success stories such as these are fantastic, however they are by no means the
norm. To get a sense of the bigger picture, we need to look at statistics,
particularly the gini coefficient and its economic and political implications.
In reality, despite what the video a few posts above me
might lead you to believe, income inequality is a serious issue for everyone,
rich and poor. Regardless of the reasons that lead to inequality, as we can
debate those ad infinitum, the fact remains that it is hindering the growth of
this nation and sending us down a lose-lose road of class warfare. Income
inequality threatens the political stability of our nation, impedes advances in
health and education, and negates policies aimed at improving overall quality
of life.
First, greater income inequality polarizes the classes,
creating a political climate that is extremely volatile. It doesn’t take much
to realize that this is already happening, i.e. the fiscal “cliff,” cuts to
social programs, increased regulation of the financial sector. Heck, look at NS
recently, the political climate is more heated than ever. The US gini
coefficient is 40.8 according to the World Bank. Go look at a list of countries
ranked by gini coefficient and try to find a developed nation with a larger
one. The countries that do have
larger figures are countries like South Africa and Brazil, countries that are
currently facing impossible political environments because their populations
are so divided. It is a disgrace that the US is anywhere near these countries
in terms of inequality when we have such great wealth as a nation.
Secondly, income inequality leads to inequality in schools
and access to good healthcare. Schools in poor and disadvantaged areas simply
do not receive the funding necessary to prepare their students for leading
healthy, contributory lives. Consequently, and undeniably, poor education leads
to higher crime rates across the board. Crime is a huge detractor from economic
growth, in addition to being an awful setback in overall quality of life for
all. Access to good healthcare goes without saying. A healthy nation is a
productive nation, so leaving a good percentage of our population out to dry in
terms of healthcare negatively affects us all.
Lastly, income inequality makes it nearly impossible to
promote good quality-of-life policies. For example, it would be extremely
advantageous for this country to switch to renewable energy. But even the
slightest increase in prices in order to promote the switch from
traditionally-sourced energy would severely disadvantage the poor, who pay a
much larger percentage of their income for basic necessities. The same can be
said for higher quality, environmentally-friendly food and so on.
Are the poor richer in absolute terms than they were 50
years ago? Yes. But does that mean we don’t have a serious inequality issue?
Absolutely not. Is complete socialism, with a gini coefficient <20, the
answer? The jury is still out, not to mention its political feasibility.
However, our current income inequality is a ticking time bomb and we MUST fix
it. I personally, as a middle middle-class young adult, sincerely care about the
well-being of those less fortunate than me and would very much like to improve
their quality of life as best I can, regardless of how their situation arose.
Bottom line, we all have an invested interest in helping those less fortunate
than us, it should be a no-brainer.
I apologize for the massive post.
/rant
EndFragment
