Trends In Income Inequality

In today’s society people are viewed as being in different classes depending on how much money they bring in. The categorization of people is known as classism. Classism is simply the prejudice or in favor of people belonging to a particular social class. Classism is known as one of the largest social problems plaguing the world today. Classes are formed according to how the rules of the following institutions; government regulations and economic status. It is held in place by a system of beliefs and cultural attitudes that ranks people according to their; economic status, family lineage, job status, and level of education. There are three major classifications to which people are titled. They include upper or high class which includes the

Income inequality has been a major issue in American history. There are many different factors that contribute to inequality. These include education, wealth, discrimination, ability, and monopoly power.

In Income Inequality: Too Big to Ignore, Robert H. Frank paints a picture to the reader about the struggles of pier pressure. For example: an upper-classmen chooses to buy a big house and fancy clothing. This acts as a “frame of reference” to the changes and norms of the society. If he spends money on something nice, a middle-classmen will then go and decide to do the same thing, and then a lower-classmen…all the way down the social hierarchy. This is what he calls an “expenditure cascade.” Robert relates this with a person’s downfalls, which can be traced due to lower income inequality. Income inequality basically means that in a given quantity, the dispersion of income is underlined by the gap between individuals and or households with

Amongst all of the presidential candidates of the 2016 race, one in particular stands above the rest. Bernie Sanders, running as a democrat, holds the highest capability to better the nation amongst all other candidates.

A deafening and persistent roar reverberates against the glass walls, around the stone columns and through the rows of American flags, which billow above the financial hub of the United States. A sea of tens of thousands of American citizens begins below the iconic black and white sign that reads “Wall St”, and extends beyond the end of the block, filling each and every square inch of space in-between. Over and over again, in unison, they chant “We are the ninety-nine percent!” and collectively form a voice that is heard not just throughout the stock exchange, or the city of New York, but throughout the entire country and the world. Occupy Wall Street was a movement that brought together members of the “99%” — the bottom ninety-nine

In any given population, there is a difference between what people within the population earn. The uneven distribution of income in any given population is income inequality. In order for there to be income, there has to be several sources of income. These sources of income may be combinational or independent per person receiving the income. Income may result from wages, rent, bank account interests, salaries or even profits made in business transactions ( Stiglitz, 2012).

Imagine that the U.S economy is a group of ten people making a cake. Despite the fact that everyone contributed, one person would take 90% of the cake. The other nine would be left to fight over the renaming 10%. In what universe would this be a fair situation.

Without realizing it, most of us live in a bubble. This impermeable layer makes us oblivious to what's going on in the world and ignorant to the truth. The media is powerful, but there is a huge difference between seeing something, and experiencing it in person. After 17 years of living in that bubble, I finally popped it and opened my eyes to a world I had never felt before. Colombia, like many developing nations, faces rampant income inequality that acts as a huge barrier for the country to make a leap towards economic prosperity. But to truly understand this great monster in our world called "income inequality", you have to experience both extreme living conditions. And during the summer, I was able to do just that. In 24 hours. With an

In response to the article, some the information was new but a lot of it not surprising.  It was surprising, however, to read that although Mr. Naets is somewhat more educated and most likely in a higher tax bracket than his parents were, his standard of living is a lot lower than that of his parents.  That is alarming only because we have a lot more opportunities available to us through networking or technology and on a scale that was never available to our parents. Also in Mr. Naets case, he and his wife earn well above the national average which is also alarming because you would think that someone in such a position would not be as worried as someone of the opposite spectrum. It is discerning to think that no matter how hard we strive to for a better life, we will always feel that is not enough.

Inequality is not favorable in society. There is inequality in many aspects of our society, such as race, and gender. The main inequality we look at is income inequality in the United States. The one percent of the population control a vast majority of the United States currency. The Gini coefficient has been increasing ever since the Industrial Revolution, a period where education, manufacturing, and economics has shown growth. However, income inequality has increased in the Industrial Revolution. There are many events, and causes that have led to the rise of income equality in the United States.

The current widening income inequality is due to the substantial income disparity between the top and bottom workers in the U.S. economy. General decline in wage endangered the standard of living for low income family as they struggle with a tightened budget. In order to battle income inequality, policy makers must raise the income of the working poor by expanding tax credit program and increase its effectiveness through major modification.

The United States of America is vastly known for their rugged individualism. That is, the fascination with the belief that hard work and the free market will allow an individual to rise to the top. Since many of us were small children, we were told by our parents to pursue a college education, and once that is done, then our lives will fall into place.

The current method to measure poverty fails to capture the whole financial situation of the individual for family seeking assistance. The eligibility guidelines for the benefit is based on outdated household income figures, does not adjust for geographic location nor capture a true reflection of one’s basic need for survival.

There are four categories of class in contemporary American society: upper, middle, working and lower. Of these four categories of classes, two are subdivide. These two are: upper class and the middle class.

This could be because of the stagflation, the combination of recession with inflation, of that decade. The stagflation leads to unemployment as there is less growth in the economy, more workers are laid off or they will receive a lower salary. In times of a recession it is very difficult to find a job or a better paying job. On the other hand, the government might give subsidies to companies to stimulate growth, the owners of the companies or managers because of this may receive a higher salary. This contributes to income inequality.