Polarisation of incomes and prosperity

[Egbert]

Here is an interesting article from the IMF touching on the increasing polarisation of income distribution and how this flows into overall prosperity.

https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2015/09/28/04/53/sp062216

The poor are indeed becoming poorer.

PS Sorry this is not my usual spam. Spamming will now resume as normal.

[BeBMan]

If everybody voted for non-establishment candidates with superior ideas to solve everything (and have others paying for it) this issue would not exist.

[Aeson]

We won't have to worry about polarisation much longer ... because of global warming ... so long suckers!

[The Mad Monk]

An accurate picture would have those paws around the throat of a seal pup.

[Lorizael]

I've heard it argued that income inequality is not really a bad thing because people overall are becoming richer, even if the gap between rich and poor is increasing. As an example, people will point to the fact that basically everybody owns an iPhone now, a device that the richest man on the planet could not own anything even remotely similar to twenty years ago. The problem I see with this argument is that, yes, it does appear that we have gotten substantially better at providing certain material goods to people (tech, clothing, food), but we've gotten no (or little) better at distributing infrastructure-type improvements or less tangible resources (roads, education, medical care, equal protection under the law) to the poor. So while everybody might technically be richer and have something to show for it, that doesn't mean that everybody's lives or opportunities have dramatically improved. Not sure how to tackle this problem, since I think it might be central to the way capitalism operates (good at some things, terrible at others).

[Aeson]

Well the poor people are in other countries making the iPhones (and everything else).

And we're all worse off that they don't make decent wages.

[Elok]

An accurate picture would have those paws around the throat of a seal pup.

On the contrary, it's beautifully appropriate; that beverage is just loaded with CO2. The bear knows it's unhealthy and he doesn't really need it. But you know he's going to drink it anyway. And then he'll die.

[Ben Kenobi]

That's one argument. The better argument is that wealth inequality is a feature, not a bug. What you care about is the area under the curve, not the distribution.

[Aeson]

Put your money where your mouth is. If all that matters is area under the curve ... give all your Catholic tax evasion money to me ... then we will all know you really believe that.

[Ben Kenobi]

Put your money where your mouth is. If all that matters is area under the curve ... give all your Catholic tax evasion money to me ... then we will all know you really believe that.

Yes, all that matters is the area under the curve - the area under the curve being the net earnings of the people, not the gross earnings. Lowering my net income would not increase the area under that curve, rather it would decrease it.

You seem to have not understood my argument.

[Aeson]

I would have more, you would have less ... all that changes is distribution. Which you said doesn't matter.

[Aeson]

And you said "wealth", not "net income".

[Ben Kenobi]

I would have more, you would have less ... all that changes is distribution. Which you said doesn't matter.

Yes, and the point is that taxation doesn't redistribute wealth, it destroys it. Even if you assumed perfect efficiency (which no taxation system ever approaches), you are losing money every step of the way.

So, me paying more taxes will lower the area under the wealth curve - for everyone.

[Aeson]

You say yes, but obviously do not believe what you are saying. You hold onto your money and prove you think distribution of wealth matters.

[Ben Kenobi]

You say yes, but obviously do not believe what you are saying. You hold onto your money and prove you think distribution of wealth matters.

Hrm?

give all your Catholic tax evasion money to me ... then we will all know you really believe that.

Don't you make more than me? That would increase rather than decrease inequality. Wouldn't you rather I gave one dollar to everyone I saw?