Piketty's Work: A Summary

In 1970, the top fifth of all families had incomes that averaged 223 percent of the national average, while the bottom fifth had incomes of 28 percent of the average. From 1946 to 1960, the difference in inequality did not change much, but from 1960 to 1968 there was a slight decline. On the contrary, between 1968 and 1970 the opposite had happen. To further explain the little difference in Income Inequality from the mid 1940’s to the present, a series of numbers and percentages will be used, but only the salaries made throughout the years are the only difference, it’s obvious that the gap between the rich and the poor keeps increasing. The salaries of course are going to be different due to the minimum wages increasing as time goes by, due to the higher cost of living. That does not mean that the Poor Class is living better, in fact, if anything, the Poor Class is having a harder time surviving due to the increased cost of living, yes the salaries rise, but not to the extent to keep up with the cost of living. It’s almost as if a poor person would have to work at more than one job in order to be able to survive, and in most cases that’s not even enough, depending on the situation that a person is in, family size, debt, etc. Due to those circumstances, if a person is working more than one job, then that will limit that person’s time to actually educate themselves at a higher education institution, and that will lead to yet another highly uneducated American

Income Inequality is a major problem that has been going on in America for decades. Many people feel that it barely exists today, but those people are very uneducated and don’t really care about the huge problem in front of them the many people that feel that way are highly uneducated, and seem to not really care about which has been gradually increasing instead of decreasing. Unfortunately, there’s not much that can be done, only of course if the poor class of people decide to actually educate themselves and get a higher education. One says poor class, simply because that’s how they’re classified. There are five types of levels that Americans are classified as, and they are: Upper Class, Upper Middle Class, Middle Class, Working Class, Poor. The highest percentage of Americans fall in the Poor department, and it has been that way for decades, and will continue to be that way for decades to come.

Poverty is a vicious cycle that inevitably affects future generations. By breaking the cycle of poverty with education, better government

politicians to put more emphasis on the power of education and support funding for it. By taxing the wealthy at a higher, but still fair rate, and putting said money into funding for education and public schooling, the U.S. will be able to enlighten more people in new fields of work, and this education will create jobs for those who are typically used to labor demanding work. Public funding in these programs will ensure education and healthcare to all, no matter how much money they make. Also, in the case of the current day United States, it is a matter of ensuring that politicians make these changes at federal levels, because essentially, that is the only way that a difference will be made. The current U.S. political system is dominated by money and this just goes to show that income inequality today has increased in ways that threaten economic growth, and even the health of U.S. democracy (Tyson). If United States politicians fail to acknowledge the rising gap between the rich and the poor, the inequality will ultimately keep rising, potentially leading the United States into a recession. By simply ignoring its existence, U.S. leaders and policymakers are essentially allowing the future of the nation to be jeopardized, with regards to social and economic

When one thinks of the word “inequality”, some things that come to mind are racial inequality, gender inequality, economic inequality, marriage inequality, or social inequality. These inequalities have evolved into movements and revolutions, making strides for future generations to live in a nation that supports them. However, when it comes to making strides for our future generations to be successful, the same statement cannot be made. This is due to the fact that our nation and government aren’t concerned with the welfare and success of our present generation. One inequality that hasn’t delivered a sense of urgency to be tackled by our nation, and specifically our city of New York, is Education Inequality. Horace Mann, “The Father of American

Everyone has heard the saying “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer” but few people think of schools when they here this phrase. The way our educational system is set up today benefits students in high income areas more than it helps students in low income schools. People in the United States like to think that anyone can achieve greatness if they try hard enough but getting an education is important and being in a well-funded school never hurts. In this country there is a profound lack of funding to our schools and there is an inequality when it comes distributing the funds and it only serves to help some and disadvantage others.

The commentary from the author Jim DiEugenio(2014), of this article, Tracing the Source of Income Inequality,” does an account the second part of the book, “Capital in the 21st Century,” by Thomas Piketty. DiEugenio(2014) covers a wide array of topics concerning the public policy issue of income equality in not only the United States, but also globally in the latter half of the report of the book. In the beginning of the article, DiEugenio(2014) discussed about the differences in periods of the American economy with the eras of Reaganomics, the economy after the Great Depression, as well as the era after World War I. The economic era after the the Great Depression was a bustling time due to the programs being offered for low income

Impoverished parents tend to live in towns with underfunded school districts. They are unable to give their children the proper resources to exceed. Those children go on to struggle to a livable wage, some of them even turning to crime to make ends meet. The government attempting to shorten the gap of children growing up in poverty and those growing up in the middle class. Bargain (2012) describes a few ways the government can make a difference for spending on children. The government can give cash to parents to spend on kids, which has been shown to be ineffective as only a small portion goes to the kids. More effectively, the government can create subsidies for children’s products, which has been shown to increase spending on children. Cascio (2013) speaks about how to close the education gap. Creating cash incentives for schools to increase test scores through programs such as No Child Left Behind has been shown to have some effect on helping bridge the educational gap. However, not enough is being spent to make a large enough

Millions of Americans are affected by poverty every day, it does not spare anyone of a certain race, age, or gender. As children go hungry and the homeless become invisible, the 85 percent of wealthy Americans go on believing poverty does not exist. We live in a “culture of poverty” where there are many Americans that deny the fact that the country is in a state of despair, the only likely way out is to change how the government assists the deprived and to educate the unknowing. Policy makers have the ability to implement new initiatives that would decrease if not eliminate the underclass within America. By implementing new policies such as more flexible jobs as well as aiding with savings, this could entice the underclass to build wealth and instill a sense of hope and fortune, something the poor have not felt for years.

Education reform can be taken to educate the public on what exactly wealth inequality is and its effects on the United States’ economy. Changes such as expanding public education to all members of the socioeconomic ladder, further regulating charter and private schools, and ensuring the children of tomorrow are learning what is really happening in the United States through current events education can help solve the obfuscation of wealth inequality. Providing lower-cost education to members of the middle and lower classes could fight the decline of social mobility in the United States caused as a result of wealth inequality. Although education reform will certainly cost the United States in the short-term, long-term effects such as higher wages, improved health, reduced dependency on social welfare programs, and increased volunteerism are well worth the initial costs. Although investing in education is a viable option, there are other ways to solve the problem of wealth

citizens will have two substantial impacts on income inequality. First, the measure will increase the top tax brackets’ relative share of the federal tax burden, slowing the rapid growth of the income gap. Second, the additional revenue will increase available funding for education, social programs, and infrastructure. Strengthening these programs will supplement incomes for poorer families and enable children of low-wage parents to access higher-paying jobs in the future. In the 1970’s, then-Governor of Arkansas Bill Clinton argued for a sales tax increase to fund education since the program would “benefit the children and grandchildren of the working class and poor more than any other people” (Newman 51). While Clinton correctly believed that “educational improvement benefits low-income families in the long run,” a better solution would focus on progressive taxes to not “impose burdens on poor families” (51). In the nineteenth century, the United States’ “investment in education…spread throughout the economy, creating a reservoir of skill that outstripped the rest of the developed world” (14). If America once again makes such an investment, it will drastically strengthen its economic position by tapping into the ability currently lying dormant in lower-income households. Millions of children with the potential to become leaders in politics, business, and education are hampered by an education system that lacks the resources to adequately

Economic inequality reigns as a massive divide in the United States of America. Many active policies cause people to occupy an economic level which is meant to benefit those above them. With that said, there have been many efforts taken in hopes of reducing the current levels of economic inequality, but with these efforts, money and wealth will have to be taken from the rich to give to the poorer. This is where the problem lies with wealth inequality – many have to sacrifice for those whom they presume to be unworthy of benefiting from their fortunes. Education, wealth, race, and power all play a role as to why action will not be taken to reduce the current levels of inequality in America.

However, it is nearly impossible for us to make progress towards this end when we are bogged down by centuries of social injustice and deeply ingrained power imbalances. We continue to push this idea of The American Dream, where anyone, no matter their circumstances, can pull themselves up by their bootstraps and become some self made man archetype. In reality, people are afforded drastically different opportunities on the basis of their socioeconomic status, race, and gender. For many Americans, the quality of their education is decided by their zip code. Here in Alabama, for instance, our 1901 Constitution mandates that education funding come from property and sales taxes, which are directly related to the income of the families zoned for a school. This means that in rural and otherwise underprivileged counties, there is little to no funding for these schools which puts these children at a significant intellectual disadvantage, from kindergarten on to the rest of their lives. You can’t pull yourself out of the cycle of poverty if you are never given the means or opportunity to succeed. We have a corrupt system that benefits the interests of a small, privileged elite over the working class majority, and that, at the end of the day, places the value of economic capital over that of

Poverty is an important issue in the United States. In fact, child poverty in the US is at its highest point in 20 years. [Flores & Lesley, 2014] The poor are at a disadvantage, because they have an unfulfilled right to a good education. A majority of children attending public schools come from low-income families. It is hypothesized that a low household income correlates with poor achievement in school. A solution to poverty is for everyone to have a good education so everyone can be equally prepared to take on a high-skill, high-paying job. It’s unfortunate, because the solution to poverty is a good education, but a good education is hardly ever available to children living in poverty.

An important factor in the creation of inequality is variation in individuals’ access to education (Becker, et. Al, 2007). According to Bosworth et. Al, (1999) education in a field that requires or demand a high number of workers, creates high wages for those with advance education. As a result, those who are unable to afford good quality education or choose not to participate in schools or colleges, generally receive much lower wages and thus it lowers aggregate savings and investment. In particular, the increase in family income and wealth