- Which statistic on wealth inequality in the US (discussed on p. 29) made the biggest impression on you? Explain why?
One statistic on wealth inequality that made an impression on me is the fact that the richest 1 percent holds more than 40-50 percent of the nation’s capital. This saddens me and also upsets me. I feel this just goes to show unfair America is and the priorities of our nation. America struggles with poverty, homelessness,etc. many people cannot even afford to put food on the table or clothing on their back but the 20% of the nation’s richest people makes 13 times the amount of 20 poor people. How can this be possible. Our nation needs to find a way of balancing the wealth inequality. How come everyone can’t live comfortable. I do believe fixing that gap will help lower crime rates, poverty, and homelessness.
- What could be some of the implications of living in a society that has such huge wealth inequalities? Do you see this dynamic getting played out in everyday life in our society? How so? Example?
Well, some implications of living in a society with a huge wealth gap is what we see here everytime we walk out our front doors. Poverty, homelessness, crime, etc. I do feel that the gap help create these problems. Many people are out here working for the minimum wage meanwhile the cost of living is 50 – 60 times that. When i recently move if I did not exceed 40 times the rent i would not been able to move. This is not ok. People are going hungry and are running out of options so they are turning to the next best thing which is robbing/ committing crimes to help them meet their everyday needs.
