dreamdancer 0 #1 July 21, 2010 'tis all topsyturvy... QuoteAmerica's median wage, adjusted for inflation, has barely budged for decades. Between 2000 and 2007 it actually dropped. Under these circumstances the only way the middle class could boost its purchasing power was to borrow, as it did with gusto. As housing prices rose, Americans turned their homes into ATMs. But such borrowing has its limits. When the debt bubble finally burst, vast numbers of people couldn't pay their bills, and banks couldn't collect. Each of America's two biggest economic downturns over the last century has followed the same pattern. Consider: in 1928 the richest 1 percent of Americans received 23.9 percent of the nation's total income. After that, the share going to the richest 1 percent steadily declined. New Deal reforms, followed by World War II, the GI Bill and the Great Society expanded the circle of prosperity. By the late 1970s the top 1 percent raked in only 8 to 9 percent of America's total annual income. But after that, inequality began to widen again, and income reconcentrated at the top. By 2007 the richest 1 percent were back to where they were in 1928 -- with 23.5 percent of the total. We all know what happened in the years immediately following these twin peaks -- in 1929 and 2008. http://www.alternet.org/economy/147531/it%27s_all_about_the_wages_--_our_economy_would_be_fine_if_everyone_made_their_fair_share/stay away from moving propellers - they bite blue skies from thai sky adventures good solid response-provoking keyboarding Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quade 4 #2 July 21, 2010 QuoteWe all know what happened in the years immediately following these twin peaks . . . We . . . had . . . coffee?quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
