The US Is Now 50% More Unequal Than Ancient Rome (And That Includes Slaves)
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/29/2014 17:38 -0400
As we previously noted, only the highest income earners have seen any gains in compensation since the crisis began around 2007 to the current ‘recovery’ tops. It is perhaps not entirely surprising then that, the total income controlled by the Top 1% is drastically above that of the slave-included times of Ancient Rome and as high as the peak in the roaring 20s.
Current inequality is almost 50% worse than in Ancient Rome and as large as the end of the roaring 20s…
Source: @ConradHackett
Which is hardly surprising given that since 2007, incomes have only risen for highest wage-earners…
We leave it to the following 139 words by Elliott’s Paul Singer to conclude – which in two short paragraphs explains everything one needs to know about America’s record class inequality, including precisely who is the man responsible:
Inequality in the U.S. today is near its historical highs, largely because the Federal Reserve’s policies have succeeded in achieving their aim: namely, higher asset prices (especially the prices of stocks, bonds and high-end real estate), which are generally owned by taxpayers in the upper-income brackets. The Fed is doing all the work, because the President’s policies are growth-suppressive. In the absence of the Fed’s moneyprinting and ZIRP, the economy would either be softer or actually in a new recession.
The greatest irony is that the President is railing against inequality as one of the most important problems of the day, despite the fact that his policies are squeezing the middle class and causing the Fed – with the President’s encouragement – to engage in the radical monetary policy, which is exacerbating inequality. This simple truth cannot be repeated often enough.
Roman slaves had it good — they were allowed the opportunity to accumulate wealth and could eventually buy their own freedom. Today, we are allowed to accumulate debt and have no path to escaping bondage. Eschew the system a la Hardscrabble Farmer, and it is just a matter of time before the authorities come around to pummel you with regulations until you submit. Your best hope is to live an invisible life, avoiding attention and bowing down just enough to not be the tallest poppy. Sad.
Paul Singer still doesn’t fully understand.
Yes the FR and the moneychangers are a big part of the problem.
BUT, so sorry Mr. Singer, the FACT that we allowed the mega-corporations to offshore our production while simultaneously allowing the government to enact the laws that shut down the middle class/small biz and gift their former wealth to the 1%, the government worker, and the FSA.
Refusing to accept reality means it will NEVER be fixed. NEVER.
We, the little guys, have paid for the 1%’s jumps in wealth with our jobs, our homes, and our futures. And the bill has not been settled in full yet.
That day will come when our “outside partners” decide they no longer value our fiat like we do. Then EVERYONE will find out first hand how much was shipped offshore, how much was lost, how little we have left, and how few actually benefited from “cheap” Asian processing and goods.
The Romans were amateurs.
Positive note: We are the society that ALL future societies will study, when this puppy blows it is going to make every other societal shakeup in history look like matters of no concern.
It is going to be spectacular.
*boom*
The Romans didn’t wear underwear. I know that because of my Italian historian girlfriend.
..more immigrants, please.
ep 29, 3:02 PM EDT
Schools scramble to help teens who crossed border
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_IMMIGRATION_OVERLOAD_SCHOOLS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
By KIMBERLY HEFLING
FRANKFORD, Del. (AP) — American schools are scrambling to provide services to the large number of children and teenagers who crossed the border alone in recent months.
Unaccompanied minors who made up the summer spike at the border have moved to communities of all sizes, in nearly every state, Federal data indicates, to live with a relative and await immigration decisions. The Supreme Court has ruled that schools have an obligation to educate all students regardless of their immigration status, so schools have become a safe haven for many of the tens of thousands of these young people mostly from central America living in limbo.