US income inequality continues to grow

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(08-02-2018, 06:54 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Then why so much talk about "helping middle class workers".  Things are getting worse for the middle class instead of better.

How bad does it have to get before you admit there is any kind of problem?

They are.  In my case, I am making more money per year than either of my baby boomer parents ever did in their entire career.  In fact, I started out making more. I'm actually in management.  My wife and I both work full time, she works nights, I work days, so we don't have to pay for daycare.  I didn't buy a house until I was 33 years old.  We drive old vehicles, and I do most all of the maintenance and repairs myself to save money.  I do most of the same around the house as well.....I've even rented lifts to top trees, even taking out a huge maple that was getting dangerous myself.  We do everything we can to save money.  We don't struggle, per se, but we don't have much room for error.  That being said, we can't afford vacations that we took as a family when I was a kid.  We DO go to a race every year, but as a kid, we went to races, ballgames, the fairs, amusement parks, and still managed a vacation for a week or so about every year.  That's not the case for us.  We've taken exactly one since the kids came on the scene.

Now, obviously, this isn't something to complain about, it is what it is, but it just goes to show that wages have not kept up with the inflation as has been noted here a few times.

[Millhouse]

(08-03-2018, 12:22 AM)Benton Wrote: I’m open to ideas. So far the most prevelant is increasing the minimum wage (which I’m against) or providing more educational opportunities (which generally aren’t feasible to someone working 2-3 jobs).

One idea I read about is to start reducing or eliminating IP laws when it comes to certain things like medicines. For example instead of fictional company 'Rippinyouoff Corp' having exclusive manufacturing rights to a certain drug that is widely used, that drug can be shared by whomever to be manufactured which would create competition for said drug to drive it's price down. If done on a wide scale of drugs, then a lot of people would save money. And the original company that came up with the drug would still get their kickbacks as it's their patent. Thats the theory at least in a nutshell, as there is a lot more to it due to yearly patent costs etc.

Personally I am open to this idea for medicine, because medicine is one thing that should openly shared on how to produce, imo. Other areas though I would be hesitant about overall. It really would depend on it being a necessity vs. luxury.

Another idea is to figure out ways to discourage imports into the U.S. from countries with cheap unskilled labor. One reason income inequality has risen since the 1970s is globalization of our companies, and importing goods from places like China using cheap labor so companies here can make big profits from. I think most experts would agree on that, but they also would say the flipside is that those countries income inequality gap is being shortened as poorer people are making more money there.

[Benton]

(08-03-2018, 04:34 PM)Millhouse Wrote:  

Another idea is to figure out ways to discourage imports into the U.S. from countries with cheap unskilled labor. One reason income inequality has risen since the 1970s is globalization of our companies, and importing goods from places like China using cheap labor so companies here can make big profits from. I think most experts would agree on that, but they also would say the flipside is that those countries income inequality gap is being shortened as poorer people are making more money there.

That's a part of tariffs, and a reason I'm in favor of them. 

Some businesses are complaining that it's going to increase their operating costs — and it will — but if it moves jobs here, then that's a positive. It's like Nike saying they couldn't make a profit making shoes in the US and needed those child labor sweatshops (which, in fairness, I think they've stopped that mostly). If every business followed suit (and many are) by charging $90 for a pair of shoes that cost $1 to make and $20 to market, then hiding the taxable $69 in an offshore account, they're screwing the economy.

[GMDino]

From six years ago:




https://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/23/business/profitable-caterpillar-pushes-workers-for-steep-cuts.html

[GMDino]

Putting profit before people, or before actually doing the job you are saying you are doing correctly is nothing new.

We just used to, as a country, force companies to do the right thing if they were not....once they were caught and once the public found out about it.

[*Wyche'sWarrior*]

(08-03-2018, 06:02 PM)Benton Wrote: That's a part of tariffs, and a reason I'm in favor of them. 

Some businesses are complaining that it's going to increase their operating costs — and it will — but if it moves jobs here, then that's a positive. It's like Nike saying they couldn't make a profit making shoes in the US and needed those child labor sweatshops (which, in fairness, I think they've stopped that mostly). If every business followed suit (and many are) by charging $90 for a pair of shoes that cost $1 to make and $20 to market, then hiding the taxable $69 in an offshore account, they're screwing the economy.

Globalization is a buzz word for wage suppression......