Jared Bernstein: Wealth Inequality
One percent of Americans control 22 percent of the nation’s wealth. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says a democratic society must address such inequality if it hopes to remain healthy. Are citizens concerned about the gap between rich and poor in the United States? Find out what Jared Bernstein, economist and researcher with the Economic Policy Institute and co-author of “The State of Working America,” thinks about the economic divide and “YOYO” economics.
The news media still protect Americans
I have worked as a journalist and journalism educator for 28 years. I still report and edit, and consume all kinds of news each day — TV, newspapers, magazines, the Web and in whatever form it gets delivered.
I have been a news consumer since childhood. I grew up in a family and with parents who believed that people need to know what’s going on in the world — the world defined very loosely: our neighborhoods, our cities, our states, the U.S. and all other places.
Getting Involved in the Political Process
A student at the College of William and Mary, Matt Beato ran for city council in Williamsburg, Va., in 2008. Certainly younger than “an average” candidate, Matt decided that the local city government could be more effective if it accurately represented all of its constituencies. It turns out Matt didn’t win the election, but he thinks he made a statement for young people in Williamsburg.
Pants police cause the real problem
Nothing undermines efforts to get people involved in governance more than political pandering by politicians and bureaucrats.
While our communities and our country seem to spiral out of whack, leaders focus on benign issues that get media attention but do little to address community problems.
Lately it seems that community leaders throughout the country think high gas prices, rising unemployment, crime and underachieving public schools can all disappear if we go after kids who wear droopy pants.
Honesty amidst the stupidity
Saying something really stupid does not disqualify someone from becoming president. In fact, I think we can safely say that saying myriad stupid things neither disqualifies a candidate for president nor a standing president.
But it clearly begs the question, “How can someone we are being led to believe is so intelligent and so equipped to lead, say something so incredibly stupid?”
For the short-term example, we turn to Hillary Clinton and her now “old news” comments about staying in the race because Barack Obama might get assassinated.
Split sville
We are no longer Americans; mostly, we’re characterized as liberals or conservatives. Our nation is approaching the divisiveness that was present during the Civil War. It is no wonder that we have a dysfunctional government. Career politicians have adroitly diverted our attention from their poor performance by using a scapegoat, the other political party.
The plight of the political "independent"
A news story about the approaching Democratic Primary in Kentucky recently caught my eye.
Kentucky operates a “closed” primary, meaning that registered Democrats and Republicans cannot switch parties, called a “crossover.” It also means that someone registered as an “independent” cannot vote. Other states such as Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Oklahoma and Utah follow similar rules. In all, the National Association of Secretaries of States reports that 16 states use closed primaries.
More on Wealth Inequality
Here are links to sites where you can find more about wealth inequality.
www.inequality.org: A web resource dedicated to the topic of wealth inequality.
Economic Policy Institute
National data from The State of Working America 2006/2007: Compare wages and compensation trends, jobs, unionization, family earnings and income trends, and prices throughout the last 50 years.
