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Income Inequality
- Thread starter Texas_Signmaker
- Start date
It's a shame those arguing "against" income inequality continue to not address the actual subject of income inequality. Blaming the poor, minorities, lazy, youth, globalization, and lack of religion is literally not addressing the question while also continues to spread propaganda.
The numbers tell the story. It's quite clear it's a problem and it's quite clear that it exists and is not a hoax or a made up political agenda. But because ~40-50% of the population can't get on board with that, we can't move to the next level of the discussion: How to actually deal with it.
The numbers tell the story. It's quite clear it's a problem and it's quite clear that it exists and is not a hoax or a made up political agenda. But because ~40-50% of the population can't get on board with that, we can't move to the next level of the discussion: How to actually deal with it.
Johnny Best
Active Member
"How to actually deal with it"? Now that is going to be cut and paste of another hundred articles.
Gino
Premium Subscriber
Yeah, it is a shame, but that's why there is a discussion ..... or for some, it's like a scrap book, pasting everything they cut out of the newspaper. However, I don't think the people participating in the debate worldwide is, a 50/50 deal.
It's just that in this country, we always listen to the other side, allow them to present their ideas or thoughts and then we talk about it, then vote on it. So far, it's not working out, but y'all keep trying. Someday, you will win, but you won't have anyone left to help pay for the mess you asked for. Watch and see. I'm old enough, that I probably won't see these drastic things take place, but it sure will make for a hardship and burden on our children and grandchildren to hafta pay for this fiasco you seem to think we need.
It's just that in this country, we always listen to the other side, allow them to present their ideas or thoughts and then we talk about it, then vote on it. So far, it's not working out, but y'all keep trying. Someday, you will win, but you won't have anyone left to help pay for the mess you asked for. Watch and see. I'm old enough, that I probably won't see these drastic things take place, but it sure will make for a hardship and burden on our children and grandchildren to hafta pay for this fiasco you seem to think we need.
They are called sources of reference you pinhead. Sandwiched between the links of actual real news worthy information are observations and perspective built from a lifetime of being in a working class trade that has seen plenty of transformation directly related to the topic at hand.
There are dozens of us exploring this topic and it's offshoots in a mutually respectful, thought provoking way. Then there are The three hypocrites who have nothing but their reflex action to turn it personal and who have contributed very little constructive to the discussion.
There are dozens of us exploring this topic and it's offshoots in a mutually respectful, thought provoking way. Then there are The three hypocrites who have nothing but their reflex action to turn it personal and who have contributed very little constructive to the discussion.
Gino
Premium Subscriber
Hmmmm...... I can only think of one. He's from Californy.
Seriously, do you ever re-read the stuff you wrote, before you hit send ?? Try it sometime, it might help you not appear so silly.
Seriously, do you ever re-read the stuff you wrote, before you hit send ?? Try it sometime, it might help you not appear so silly.
By the way, you sure are using a lotta names calling people out. Didn't you copy and paste about that many times ?? In fact, you've gone and tattled on people about it, but yet, you are by far the biggest abuser. I do believe you really need some time off. You're beginning to fray around the edges.
Texas_Signmaker
Very Active Signmaker
Calling people names "Pin Head" is not very tolerant, progressive or inclusive of you Toad. It insinuates he has a head deformity or mental handicap. Gino, I think that's harassment, we need to call the PC police, ya got their number?
Gino
Premium Subscriber
The only thing I report is non-Merchants hawking their wares. People wanna be stupid and silly, so be it. I've already flew off the handle, but not to the degree the toad does. Between his name-calling and downright copying and pasting in the name of reference seeking is just very entertaining for me. I haven't laughed this much, since Addie left the building. Toad is much better, cause he doesn't shoot raccoons in barrels and I think he knows how to use a ladder. 
Hey, he's 
in his own little way.
in his own little way.
GAC05
Quit buggin' me
To be fair I think most of us have not seen Gino's head. Without visual evidence to the contrary it could just be an observation.
1st. The majority of income inequality is the divide between the super-rich and everyone else.
2nd. Do you know how most people become super-rich? First, you work your ass off to become rich &
instead of taking it easy, fishing, golfing & spending time with the family, you continue to be a workaholic
until you're old & the only thing you have to show for it is a number on a page.
Would you do that? I know I wouldn't... how much they have has zero bearing on anyone else.
The only issue worth discussing is the quality of life for poor and working class.
Yes, there is room for improvement, no doubt about that, but America's poor have a better quality of life than the majority of the world's "middle class".
1. Death by starvation simply does not happen in America.
2. We have some of the strongest work safety laws in place to protect the poor while they struggle to better themselves.
3. There is a multitude of avenues the poor can take to better themselves, from scholarships to college and trade schools, to the military, etc.
The struggle is a gift, it makes us stronger, better people and adds meaning to our lives.
I think we all know rich brats that have never had to struggle & become useless, cr@ppy people.
The same can be said of life-long welfare recipients that never have had to make their own way.
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XtremeXccessories
New Member
Tell that to the Koch brothers.
To your first point and the $64,000 question that myself, rossmosh, BobbyH, equippaint and a few have tried to answer. Whether the divide is limited to just the super rich and the rest of us or not, WHEN does it become large enough to cause destabilization in a society and create such problems that things like suicides, drug and alcohol abuse, violence, targeting and blaming of "others" resulting in increased hate and bias crimes, family instability, etc.?
2nd point. The truly super rich get that way MOSTLY through inherited wealth, hard work, some luck and the efforts and hard labor of lots of people helping turn THEIR idea, widget, service, etc. into a success. Take a 25 truck plumbing company for example. Very common size company in bigger cities. At $125.00 per hour per truck and 6-7 billable hours per day. In a 250 day work year, that's almost $5,000,000 per year in revenue. Not super rich for the owner, but definitely in the top 1%. The owner didn't invent plumbing repair and may have inherited the company from his dad or grandfather, and while he may have worked his tail off to grow, it's undeniable that he could not have grown from a 1 person company to 25 without the efforts and hard work of his employees. That example can be duplicated across the board for most circumstances.
I find the next set of thoughts to be highly provincial, a little naive and lacking in exposure to just how bad millions of others living in the wealthiest country in world history have it. I've traveled the back roads, back country, wild places of this country for years including a 35,000 mile, 18 month sojourn between early 2003 to mid 2004. I'm sure most of the deeply entrenched "poor" in America would love to trade places with the "middle classes" in every comparably industrialized, democratically represented country but somehow I think you didn't mean to include all those countries, only the third world/poor countries.
As Americans we seem to ignore the fact that there are equally or better developed countries than ours with plenty of well compensated, happier, healthier people living wonderful lives that include plenty of nice things, far more leisure time than us and a social safety net that catches them when they fall or stumble. Corporations and business leaders in those kinds of advanced societies accept and embrace the FACTS about the importance of social responsibility being key to stability and social well being.
Just because you don't see commercials for hunger relief agencies seeking contributions to fight deep seated hunger in America doesn't mean it doesn't exist. I know several big city ER nurses and I spent some time between jobs training to be a 911 Dispatcher. My friends have related hunger related deaths and I personally took multiple calls about deaths in homeless encampments related to malnourishment. I'm sure the moralists here will blame it on substance abuse, but that's another story.
These worker safety laws you think are aiding the lower classes work in industrial safety and bliss as they ascend the ladder to prosperity are under constant assault and the agencies tasked with enforcement are hamstrung by limited budgets and minimal oversight. You want to talk about worker safety, we can't even keep our food supply, money and medicines from making people sick because industry resists any oversight and opportunistic politicians slam regulations meant to protect consumers as excessive.
These awful welfare sponges have been subject to 60 month limits to federal welfare programs since the late 90's. Most state are even less generous. Corporate welfare recipients don't seem to have the same limitations as the costs to the Treasury they exact are easily triple or quadruple what social welfare costs. The poor may get scholarships to college if they are able to weave their way through the mountains of paperwork involved, but they usually can't afford to live or eat while attending, so they end up working while at school and struggle.
I'm still waiting for a moral argument FOR unbridled wealth accumulation beyond any reasonable person's wildest imagination even when you have millions and millions of people without basic necessities. I'd love to see a defense of why Flint, MI not still doesn't have drinkable water and how those salt of the earth, hard working former auto workers should suffer while the GM executives who live in high end homes and enjoy the fruits of every one of those worker's labors shouldn't share in the solution somehow.
Income and wealth inequality isn't just monetary. Its living in Chemical Alley near Baton Rouge, or on a native american reservation near a defunct uranium mine leaching toxins into the water table. Or the poor people of Liberty Town in Miami who are being forced out ot make way for gentrification because that neighborhood is on higher ground and isn't subject to DAILY flooding like other parts of the city are.
Texas_Signmaker
Very Active Signmaker
Your or mine or anyone else's success or failure has nothing to do with how much money Bezos, Trump or Ackman have.
For a guy criticizing how much time others spend on these forums and their motivations, you sure have found a way to be on here from dawn to dark EVERY day of the week. Must be tough typing and running a lift at the same time all day.
Nobody is talking about one's success or failure.
We're talking about the threats to our society's stability and social order once the scales get tilted so far in one direction that we start resembling an oligarchic regime like Russia. Corrupt, fascistic, criminal enterprises masquerading as business people while running roughshod on the population's rights, freedoms, health and welfare and financial security.
Texas_Signmaker
Very Active Signmaker
I guarentee you, I spend much less time composing my posts then you do... but I only know that cause I scroll past your crap without reading it, and my thumb hurts from from all the swiping over your paragraphs and paragraphs of rambling idea vomit. Dont kid yourself into thinking I pay all that much attention to you.
That's hilarious! you and your two amigos are like the kids in the back of the station wagon and mom challenges you to see who can stay quiet the longest. It lasts about 2 minutes.
You couldn't put me on ignore for two days without breaking it. You love the drama and juice as much as anyone here.
The so called "guidelines" and thread rules that you had hoped to "encourage" and you yourself adhere to since they let you have your old identity back isn't working. You'dYou can't guarantee anything about anything because you don't know anyone here or how they spend their day.
You could have taken all the great advice given over the last stretch and simply ignore those you have issues with, but that would require self-discipline and independence of thought.
I wonder how our counterparts in the other industrialized, developed countries with their 6-8 weeks paid "holiday" per year feel about us not crowding their favorite getaway spots?
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/39-million-americans-cant-afford-a-summer-vacation-174406215.html
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/39-million-americans-cant-afford-a-summer-vacation-174406215.html
In more news on our fragile middle class. In a country with an abysmal savings rate to begin with, more older Americans are putting their own retirement at risk due to paying more and more of their ADULT children's bills. It couldn't be that wealth inequality has anything to do with younger people not earning enough to pay their own bills. They are just lazy, don't believe in god enough and want to play all day instead of work.
https://www.bankrate.com/personal-finance/financial-independence-survey-april-2019/
https://www.bankrate.com/personal-finance/financial-independence-survey-april-2019/