This topic should take into consideration exactly who is worried about inequality and related topics like those noted in this post. A 2021 survey by Archbridge Institute showed that college graduates say that closing the gap between the rich and poor is more important than ensuring that Americans do not live in poverty. As Rob Henderson points out in his latest Substack newsletter, far more people in the U.S. are not college graduates. Ergo, far more people are concerned about people living in poverty than whether someone is a billionaire. That is the far more rational view in a free (or at least supposed to be) country.
If by far the largest number of people in the country are not obsessed with "inequality" then a question is raised as to what is really driving this and from whom does it come.
I’m sorry but this thesis doesn’t cut it for me - velvet ropes? I guess the first one I tried to navigate was the one at Studio 54 in 1977. Don’t think money had anything to do with it - I wasn’t a hot chick and I was clearly not cool enough. I ended up at an Irish bar with cheaper booz and eats. As a longtime member of the educated elite - if graduating from an inner city Bronx HS and a SUNY college qualifies me, I find this whole discussion and group whine boring and unhelpful. The miracle of the last 30 years is the democratization of luxury. Just take a look at what the typical high schooler in say my old high school uses and takes for granted. And I suspect that the average socio-economic level of students is similar to when I attended, meaning working class or middle class, mostly black and Latino. I think the author minimizes the real issues affecting those populations, getting preferred seating
Inequality is not a problem. If you're poor, your problem is not that someone else is rich. Plenty of people have a lot more than I have, and I resent it not one bit.
Equality of wealth is not a valid goal. Freedom is.
I would say the majority of my friends in Canada are somewhere in the middle class. Most of us who've had health issues have at some time or another paid for health care outside the public system. I'm not sure I can name one of my friends whose kids just went to any old school in their neighbourhood--either they are paying for private, they pulled strings, or they actually moved to be in the community where they preferred the school. Kids get driven to school or get cars when they are old enough because public transit is an inefficient mess. Etc, etc. I don't blame anyone for doing this. Our education and health care systems are failing. Our public transportation in western Canada never was developed properly. But it effectively stratifies society. One solution might be to fix the systems so most people aren't incentivized to private measures. At the moment, it doesn't look to me like that will happen anytime soon.
Well, our institution have failed us miserably. Go to any major city and look around. How many teachers send their children to public schools. They might be leftwing ideological Marxists, but they're not stupid. Go get your car registered at the DMV.
Take your children on public transportation and try to explain to them why it smells like human waste and weed. Why not try to separate yourself?
Charles Murray has covered this class divide problem. Interesting that I have always seen it as both the primary cause and primary symptom of most social ills. Upper middle and middle class used to eat at the same restaurants, go to the same church, watch the shows, live in the same neighborhood, etc. But since then the professional class has moved out to a life of luxury and privilege leaving the middle working class to fight along with the lower class for a shrinking level of service.
This topic should take into consideration exactly who is worried about inequality and related topics like those noted in this post. A 2021 survey by Archbridge Institute showed that college graduates say that closing the gap between the rich and poor is more important than ensuring that Americans do not live in poverty. As Rob Henderson points out in his latest Substack newsletter, far more people in the U.S. are not college graduates. Ergo, far more people are concerned about people living in poverty than whether someone is a billionaire. That is the far more rational view in a free (or at least supposed to be) country.
If by far the largest number of people in the country are not obsessed with "inequality" then a question is raised as to what is really driving this and from whom does it come.
I’m sorry but this thesis doesn’t cut it for me - velvet ropes? I guess the first one I tried to navigate was the one at Studio 54 in 1977. Don’t think money had anything to do with it - I wasn’t a hot chick and I was clearly not cool enough. I ended up at an Irish bar with cheaper booz and eats. As a longtime member of the educated elite - if graduating from an inner city Bronx HS and a SUNY college qualifies me, I find this whole discussion and group whine boring and unhelpful. The miracle of the last 30 years is the democratization of luxury. Just take a look at what the typical high schooler in say my old high school uses and takes for granted. And I suspect that the average socio-economic level of students is similar to when I attended, meaning working class or middle class, mostly black and Latino. I think the author minimizes the real issues affecting those populations, getting preferred seating
Inequality is not a problem. If you're poor, your problem is not that someone else is rich. Plenty of people have a lot more than I have, and I resent it not one bit.
Equality of wealth is not a valid goal. Freedom is.
I would say the majority of my friends in Canada are somewhere in the middle class. Most of us who've had health issues have at some time or another paid for health care outside the public system. I'm not sure I can name one of my friends whose kids just went to any old school in their neighbourhood--either they are paying for private, they pulled strings, or they actually moved to be in the community where they preferred the school. Kids get driven to school or get cars when they are old enough because public transit is an inefficient mess. Etc, etc. I don't blame anyone for doing this. Our education and health care systems are failing. Our public transportation in western Canada never was developed properly. But it effectively stratifies society. One solution might be to fix the systems so most people aren't incentivized to private measures. At the moment, it doesn't look to me like that will happen anytime soon.
Well, our institution have failed us miserably. Go to any major city and look around. How many teachers send their children to public schools. They might be leftwing ideological Marxists, but they're not stupid. Go get your car registered at the DMV.
Take your children on public transportation and try to explain to them why it smells like human waste and weed. Why not try to separate yourself?
Charles Murray has covered this class divide problem. Interesting that I have always seen it as both the primary cause and primary symptom of most social ills. Upper middle and middle class used to eat at the same restaurants, go to the same church, watch the shows, live in the same neighborhood, etc. But since then the professional class has moved out to a life of luxury and privilege leaving the middle working class to fight along with the lower class for a shrinking level of service.