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> Individual lots might improve, but only at the expense of others. This is already true, we’re seeing the worst wealth inequality since the gilded age. The be

> Individual lots might improve, but only at the expense of others. This is already true, we’re seeing the worst wealth inequality since the gilded age. The benefits of growth are increasingly being captured by the wealthy.

logicchains 3y ago
Wealth equality is completely orthogonal to increasing standards of living. If you get 2x wealthier and everyone else gets 10x wealthier, wealth inequality has increased but your standard of living is still better than before, unless the sole thing you value in life is envy.
- LapsangGuzzler 3y ago
  This is not true. To follow your example, if everyone around me is 10x wealthier, then the market adjusts and everything around me rises in price accordingly. This is the essence of gentrification. To your point, if the minimum wage in a lot of areas is $15, then why aren’t there any decent houses selling for $30k anymore like they were back in the 50’s? $15/hr is quite wealthy by those standards but it is becoming pretty poor nowadays. The problem with wealth is that we tend to measure it by the concrete dollar amount in our bank account and not the purchasing power it represents.
- arrosenberg 3y ago
  Wrong. The person who got 2x wealthier will effectively be priced out of any market with limited supply. Maybe the odd person values TVs more highly than land and property, but for the rest of us, it would definitely feel poorer.
- harimau777 3y ago
  That's only true in situations where relative wealth doesn't determine standard of living. For example, if someone is able to outbid me and buy up more than their fair share of the finite housing supply leaving me without a home, if a wealthy people can afford better schooling and therefore can outcompete me for desirable jobs, or if a wealthy person gets a greater say in government due to being able to donate to politicians.
  - dukeyukey 3y ago
    In that case we need plentiful supplies of all those things - build _lots_ of houses everywhere, easily accessible education, and a political system that dilutes the power of donations.
- medvezhenok 3y ago
  It has been shown that people's happiness is much more tied to relative standards of living than absolute ones.

logicchains 3y ago

Wealth equality is completely orthogonal to increasing standards of living. If you get 2x wealthier and everyone else gets 10x wealthier, wealth inequality has increased but your standard of living is still better than before, unless the sole thing you value in life is envy.

LapsangGuzzler 3y ago
This is not true. To follow your example, if everyone around me is 10x wealthier, then the market adjusts and everything around me rises in price accordingly. This is the essence of gentrification. To your point, if the minimum wage in a lot of areas is $15, then why aren’t there any decent houses selling for $30k anymore like they were back in the 50’s? $15/hr is quite wealthy by those standards but it is becoming pretty poor nowadays. The problem with wealth is that we tend to measure it by the concrete dollar amount in our bank account and not the purchasing power it represents.
arrosenberg 3y ago
Wrong. The person who got 2x wealthier will effectively be priced out of any market with limited supply. Maybe the odd person values TVs more highly than land and property, but for the rest of us, it would definitely feel poorer.
harimau777 3y ago
That's only true in situations where relative wealth doesn't determine standard of living. For example, if someone is able to outbid me and buy up more than their fair share of the finite housing supply leaving me without a home, if a wealthy people can afford better schooling and therefore can outcompete me for desirable jobs, or if a wealthy person gets a greater say in government due to being able to donate to politicians.
- dukeyukey 3y ago
  In that case we need plentiful supplies of all those things - build _lots_ of houses everywhere, easily accessible education, and a political system that dilutes the power of donations.
medvezhenok 3y ago
It has been shown that people's happiness is much more tied to relative standards of living than absolute ones.