05-23-2018, 07:14 PM
(05-23-2018, 07:09 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Not counting the slaves made it much easier for the founding fathers to see a "lack of inequality".
We have to assume that without slavery there would have been a much larger population of extremely poor people. And governments have to give even the poorest something or else they will revolt to "get their share".
Well, today we are experiencing greater economic disparity than they did in 1774, taking into account the slaves. But you are definitely correct in that they were taking into account in the estimation at the time only those actually engaged in the political arena. So slaves and women would not be included.
"A great democracy has got to be progressive, or it will soon cease to be either great or a democracy..." - TR
"The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little." - FDR
"The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little." - FDR
