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Inequality goes back far beyond that. The slaves who built the pyramids in Egypt were pretty unequal from the Pharaoh. And even that wasn't the first society w
by compiler-guy 7y ago
Inequality goes back far beyond that. The slaves who built the pyramids in Egypt were pretty unequal from the Pharaoh.
And even that wasn't the first society with inequality. It goes back far beyond recorded history.
- dv_dt 7y agoBut gini coefficient measurements show the magnitude of inequality, and the magnitude today has returned to that of the 1920's robber baron era. And the magnitude is important because there is a correlation between higher economic growth and a gini value showing lower inequality than today.
- refurb 7y agoCouldn’t find Gini going back that far, but other measures of inequality show we’re below that of the 1930’s. And interestingly, the poverty rate is near a century low. https://www.chartbookofeconomicinequality.com/inequality-by-country/usa/ https://www.chartbookofeconomicinequality.com/inequality-by-...
- dv_dt 7y agoLook at the poverty curve again. We basically have made zero progress on the poverty rate since the 1970s and actually are drifting higher. Yet from our technology base, and continuously rising productivity, it really should be easier than ever to ensure everyone has shelter and food, and yet homelessness is exploding right now too.
- refurb 7y agoThe poverty rate is 1/3rd what it was in 1950. Remarkable progress.
- ch4s3 7y agoNot that it particularly matters, but the pyramids weren't build by slaves [1]. They were built by skilled/payed workers and some corvée labour by farmers during the flooding of the Nile as a form of taxation. [1] https://archive.org/details/pyramidscomplete00vern https://archive.org/details/pyramidscomplete00vern