DEAR AMERICA: You Should Be Mad As Hell About This [CHARTS]
In November, Americans will have a chance to speak their minds.
And there's one thing everyone should agree on:
America just isn't working right now.
It's not just Americans who aren't working. It's America itself, a country whose economy once worked for almost everyone, not just the rich.
In the old America, if you worked hard, you had a good chance of moving up.
In the old America, the fruits of people's labors accrued to the whole country, not just the top.
In the old America, there was a strong middle class, and their immense collective purchasing power drove the economy for decades.
No longer.
Over the past couple of decades, the disparity between “the 1%” and everyone else has hit a level not seen since the 1920s. And there is a widespread and growing sense that life here is not fair or right.
If America cannot figure out a way to fix these problems, the country will likely become increasingly polarized and de-stabilized. And if that happens, the recent “Occupy” protests will likely be only the beginning.
The problem in a nutshell is this:
In the never-ending tug-of-war between “labor” and “capital,” there has rarely—if ever—been a time when “capital” was so clearly winning.
And that's not just unfair.
It's un-American.
In fact, income inequality has gotten so extreme here that the US now ranks 93rd in the world in “income equality.” China's ahead of us. So is India. So is Iran.
Phi Beta Iota: The actual unemployment rate in the USA is 22.4%. Anyone that does not know this is part of the problem. Anyone that knows this and conceals it from the public is part of the corruption that has created the problem.
See Also:
Josh Kilbourn: US Disability & Food Stamp Welfare Skyrocketing
Mini-Me: Economists Scoff at Obama, Romney Job-Creation Myths
