Monetary Inequality In America

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In the feature article, “Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%,” the author, Joseph E. Stiglitz, enlightens us on the shocking detail that 1% of Americans control 40% of the nation’s income. We are given this sense of unfairness which has led citizens to form a distrust in government and business. Any and all growth in recent years has gone straight to those at the top of the financial totem pole. Financial equality in America is completely lopsided with an appalling one percent being the wealthiest. Statistics prove that over the past decade the top 1% have seen an influx of 18% in their incomes, while the other 99% have seen theirs fall. Unlike fellow nations, we have allowed this inequality to cultivate over the years. Although economist have…show more content…
This percent of people are considered to be indigent, they fail to recognize that this should not be the way of life. Quality of life can be improved drastically but if it does not in the long haul, America is doomed for failure. Inequalities of American financial problems are emphasized in three topics: shrinking opportunity, undermining the efficiency of the economy, and an under-investment in infrastructure. However, another huge factor that plays in to this disparity is that the top 1 percent want it this way. Shrinking opportunity shows that we fail to utilize our resources in the most industrious way possible. Undermining of the economy’s efficiency leads young adults to the greediness of money instead of fields that would result in a more fruitful and a strong economy. The top one percent are fairly egotistical. Scarcely do they contribute to America in ways that she needs. Greed consumes them as they reach the top and they fail to have any empathy for the other ninety-nine percent of Americans that inhabit the country. The prosperous tend to complain about a strong government, but in the end they really do like the government that is displayed here in America. It is seen as, “too gridlocked to re-distribute, too divided to do anything but lower taxes” (Stiglitz…show more content…
Much of our inequality is due to the manipulation of the financial industry itself. “America’s inequality distorts our society in every conceivable way. There is, for one thing, a well-documented lifestyle effect—people outside the top 1 percent increasingly live beyond their means.” In making this comment, Stiglitz says that the 99% of Americans whose incomes are noticeable lower live outside of their means; their outcome is more than their
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