4 ms·
Underestimation of what a wealth distribution looks like is just a common flaw with human brains, the same way people are terrible at estimating volumes of cont
by hugh3 16y ago
Underestimation of what a wealth distribution looks like is just a common flaw with human brains, the same way people are terrible at estimating volumes of containers.
The other effect which confuses things is that we're talking about the distribution of wealth, not income. Many people survive very comfortably with a near-zero or even negative net wealth... a new law-school graduate on a $140K salary probably has a negative net wealth thanks to student loans, but nobody would call him poor.
- eru 16y ago> a new law-school graduate on a $140K salary probably has a negative net wealth Depends on how you account for his future income.
- hugh3 16y agoI'm not sure how the "wealth" is being counted in these distribution of wealth plots, but I'm fairly sure it doesn't account for future income. If it did, I'm guessing the distribution would look a lot more equitable.
- eru 16y agoYes. If you keep with the definition used in the article, the recent graduate will have a rather low wealth.