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I don't think the people in the bottom 60% really care about this because they are becoming increasingly segregated physically. I have relatives that probably
by georgeecollins 9y ago
I don't think the people in the bottom 60% really care about this because they are becoming increasingly segregated physically. I have relatives that probably fit in the upper end of that bottom 60%, although like almost all Americans they consider themselves "middle-class". They don't really see the difference in income and opportunity between "middle class" in their part of the country vs. other parts, like San Francisco. It all seems fair to them, because they face the same choices as almost everyone around them and everyone they know.
- CryptoPunk 9y ago>>I don't think the people in the bottom 60% really care about this because they are becoming increasingly segregated physically. This is an important point. A high Gini coefficient is associated with higher crime rates when it is present in more integrated communities. Physical segregation between income groups (like one sees between countries in a region) reduces the crime-boosting effect of income inequality within that community.
- tabtab 9y agoRe: "I don't think the people in the bottom 60% really care about this because they are becoming increasingly segregated..." If they can get a decent income to raise a family under "civilized" conditions, I generally agree. Factory jobs usually provided that, but they are drying up without a clear alternative replacing them, at least in certain areas. There are "low skill" jobs like fast food or Uber driving, but it's difficult to raise a family on that. It looks like either socialism and/or subsidization of higher education will be needed. These may require taxing the rich. Automation and offshoring are eating into mid-skill careers. (They may eventually eat into more levels.) I don't buy the right's "float all boats" theory, except under a short-term boom cycle.