The inequality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The inequality - Essay Example The blame game going on is deep-rooted in the inappropriate structure of the American economy that cultivates inequality. Economic inequality can be gauged by comparing the earnings of a worker at the top with those of a worker at the middle. The economic inequality has grown more than two-folds from 1978 to 2010. Today, 400 Americans have more income than half of the total population of The US. In the economic boom from the Second World War up until 1978, economic benefits were widely distributed and the whole society benefited. But as the US started to recover from the economic recession of 2008, 95% of the gains went to the top 1% people. Something happened in the early 1980s that altered the relationship between economic growth and wages for the worse. Along with the stagnation of wages for the middle-class, costs of housing, education, healthcare and other facilities have soared up. Multinational companies are not increasing their products or services’ range so that more people would be hired because more and more people are aspiring to join the middle class while the purchasing power of the massive middle class in the US is decreasing. The stringent tax laws of the US serve as a disincentive for multinational corporations to bring their money to the US, so they instead spend their money buying other companies e.g. Microsoft buying Nokia. Some inequality is desirable in a capitalist system to motivate people to work hard and rise up economically, but the real problem is rooted in the inequality of opportunities in the US. The inequality of opportunities is much attributable to biased tax laws determined by the top 1% in their own favor. The existing economic structure of the US is shattering Americans’ confidence in democracy at large. An economy cannot be stable without having a strong middle-class. When adjusted for inflation, the median wage in the US is declining, and that is increasing the