America's Widening Wealth Gap
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2011-07-28/americas-widening-wealth-gap
America is facing its largest wealth disparity in a generation, and it’s pushing minorities to the economic margins. That’s the finding of a new study by the Pew Research Center. The median wealth of whites is now 20 times that of black households and 18 times that of Hispanic households. And though the recession cut across all races and ethnicities, Hispanics were especially hard hit. Hispanic families accounted for the largest single decline in wealth in the last few years. And when you add skyrocketing pay for CEOs, and increasing assets for those at the very top income brackets, you’ve got a record high divide between the rich and the poor. A look at what’s behind our country’s growing wealth gap.
Guests
Paul Taylor
executive vice president, Pew Research Center.
Gary Burtless
senior fellow, economic studies at The Brookings Institution.
Roderick Harrison
professor of sociology at Howard University, senior research fellow at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.
Comments
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Spot on.
The panelists used census forms information to gage wealth disparity? Who fills out these forms with information other than number of people in household? You might as well rely on Casey Anthony for accurate information.
Gary Burtless was in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and in Department of Labor during the Carter Administration when inflation was 11.8% and the last two year of the Carter administration saw the economy grow at a paltry 1.47% per annum. Why are we listening to Gary, again?
Although comparing white and non-white incomes has merit in describing access to success based on race, it is not a substitute for describing the real economy of most americans. White are prolific everywhere in the U.S. so this study does not compare rural to urban wealth annihilation from the Great Recession. We're not hearing about regional origins (Southern Appalachians, Cajuns, Pennsylvania Dutch); how might cultural differences account.
"White" while admittedly allowing privilege in our society, is such a vast group that it renders a lot of completely useless information. It seems to me that this comparison made more sense when income gaps between rich and the rest of us were closer, because then success ceilings could easily be pointed towards racial preferences. Our reliance on race as an indicator, I believe, blinds us to the real experience of most Americans white and non-white. This blindness puts our democracy in peril as we move from a society divided by race, to one divided more by class.
One, other thing. If I am college educated and a professional, and I hardly ever (between work and play) run into folks who make $150,000 or more) then how reliant is our median? What are the populations numbers at various income points? The middle experience, I think, is not.
The rich and powerful always call the shots.
The government provides just enough social programs
for those at the bottom of the barrel to keep them from resorting
to civil disobedience & revolution in the streets.
I think one of the problem with NPR is the consistent use of negative so-called stories that pertains to racialized persons. This is usually done by juxtaposing a fact, that is negative, with a positive story or by broadcasting a research that is true but the legitimacy can be severely diluted when put to question. In the former case, NPR might report a story about India and its impressive high tech sector but invariably the story will be tainted by talks of slums or corruption in India. At the same, time NPR does not talk about the slums that a number of whites live in in America. Another example, might be to talk about the economic growth in China but seemingly NPR always find a way to make some sort of assertion that either the people and/or the government of China are corrupt, without giving any concrete example of what exactly they, NPR, are talking about or alluding to. And let's not forget, the number of times in a week that NPR makes references to the dreadful times in America when African Americans suffered during the takeover of America by white Europeans. There is almost a sense of pride... revisiting old and painful information all in the name of so-called news. In most cases, these recollections do not add anything substantive to the story but can serve as a painful slap in the face of the Africa American families of these victims.
as it pertains to this story, which is a type of research that NPR likes to cite, as it gives a glowing review as to how whites are doing in comparison to non-whites. Yes, this study might be accurate but its degree of accuracy is in serious doubt, so much so one can dismiss it as serious research, as it tells nothing about how whites and non-whites of various socioeconomic grows are doing financially when compared against each other. I think what the researcher might find is that the difference is less about race and more about the various socioeconomic groups.
Millions of Americans were affected by the housing crisis. If whites are doing so well why are so many couch surfing after the housing bubble? Moreover, I think this sort of reporting helps to create a divide between whites and non-whites, in various ways. This sort of blatant racist reporting helps to foster a superior/inferior mentality among the populous. It turn, it can serve to embolden those of fragile mental state to feel empowered that they are superior to non-whites and can act against them in any unjust way that they chose. After all, NPR has cited in many instances how inferior non-whites are to whites.
I think this type of pseudo study helps to keep poor whites blindfolded and duped into believing that they are economically OK. Even if they are able to recognize their state of poverty the very fact that the report lumps them with whites who are doing well gives the impression that “better is on the way,” like a rescuing cowboy.
I think this type of pseudo study helps to keep poor whites blindfolded and duped into believing that they are economically OK. Even if they are able to recognize their state of poverty the very fact that the report lumps them with whites who are doing well gives the impression that “better is on the way,” like a rescuing cowboy.
Minority male graduate high school, take out $30,000 in student loans to finish college. Starts paying back student loan. Soon after meets a woman and later on (married or unmarried) becomes a father. The couple breaks up and mother files for Child support. Father agrees that the child has to be supported and voluntarily submits financials. However the courts based on laws made by politicians assign a child support order on the father so high that student loans and other financial obligations such as rent, car note & insurance, life insurance, food, telephone, etc cannot be paid and falls behind. Father falls behind on child support and due to arrears Child support enforcement agencies garnish 50%-60% of wages. 50% + 25% single person tax obligation leaves a total of 75% of earned salary taken from pay. In other words out of every $1000 earned father brings home $250, or $50,000 yearly salary father brings home just $1042 per month. In conclusion, why seek to become upwardly mobile when all the work and effort put into becoming "successful" can be wiped out instantly, with the stroke of a pen.
Those numbskull "experts" on the Thu 7-28-11 show decried the disparity of wealth between whites, blacks & hispanics (who prefer to be called latinos on the west coast), while ignoring the elephant in the room (you were on vacation that week & might have seen it, too): whites tend to have fewer children than blacks & hispanics -- 45%, 54% & 65% per household have children (according to the 2006 census), respectively.
For large families, wealth tend not to accumulate ... but dilute ... one major reason why minority families possess less "wealth." (Those "experts" just like saying the word "wealth" without assigning any cause to it.)
So one major solution to the U.S. debt is to eliminate the dependent child tax credit.
If I remember one of your respondents right, unemployment percentage is probably irreversible; it's worse in Europe, worse still in the Middle East & one cause of famine in Somalia, a malady African usually cure with the AK-47 & the machete.
So we've simply must stop rewarding people for pushing out more babies. & we've got to start discussing it now.