Since 1978...

[TitanTiger 17,612]

Reminds me a bit of this:

But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get to your burdens.” And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many and you make them rest from their burdens!” The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as heretofore; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But the number of bricks which they made heretofore you shall lay upon them, you shall by no means lessen it; for they are idle; therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ Let heavier work be laid upon the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.”

So the taskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. Go yourselves, get your straw wherever you can find it; but your work will not be lessened in the least.’ ” So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt, to gather stubble for straw. The taskmasters were urgent, saying, “Complete your work, your daily task, as when there was straw.” And the foremen of the sons of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and were asked, “Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today, as before.”

Then the foremen of the sons of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, “Why do you deal thus with your servants? No straw is given to your servants, yet they say to us, ‘Make bricks!’ And behold, your servants are beaten; but the fault is in your own people.” But he said, “You are idle, you are idle; therefore you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the LORD.’ Go now, and work; for no straw shall be given you, yet you shall deliver the same number of bricks.” The foremen of the sons of Israel saw that they were in evil plight, when they said, “You shall by no means lessen your daily number of bricks.” (Exodus 5:4–19)

Discuss.

[TexasTiger 9,668]

Stunning numbers.

[WarTim 3,208]

Solution? Play Robin Hood?

[TitanTiger 17,612]

Solution? Play Robin Hood?

Is "play Robin Hood" (however you're defining that) the only "solution?" Or should we just shrug out shoulders and accept that it's just the way things have played out and nothing can be done about it?

[80Tiger 831]

While the numbers are telling, I wonder if they used the same baseline for everything. In other words I am sure that the min wage number has been adjusted for inflation as well as the typical worker pay. Can the same be said about the other numbers? Maybe. I didn't look at the Labor dept website. With that said tuition and medical care increases are outrageous. Once you introduce a third party to the relationship (insurance for medical and ease of loans for tuition) costs skyrocket.

[Proud Tiger 4,261]

It results from the free market place. Should we do away with that is the question?

[TitanTiger 17,612]

It results from the free market place. Should we do away with that is the question?

Is the "free" market sacrosanct? If market forces result in outcomes that hammer people, do we elevate the workings of the market over people? Do people exist to serve within the confines of some idea of an unfettered market, or do market systems exist to best serve people?

[homersapien 10,202]

It results from the free market place. Should we do away with that is the question?

Thank you Gordon Gekko. :-\

"Free markets" are an invention, it's not a concept that comes from God. Furthermore, markets are defined by rules and regulations. The idea of a "free" or unfettered market that operates beyond the most basic principles of supply and demand is a myth.

Anyway, skewed wealth distribution has more to do with public policies than it does the market.

[icanthearyou 3,856]

It results from the free market place. Should we do away with that is the question?

What we should protect is the concept of competition, not pure capitalism. Capitalism is not a perfect ideology.

[GiveEmElle 1,559]

If one chooses to draw parallels between events since 1978 and biblical stories then I would think that the main point would be the sovereignty of God in the situation in Egypt and today as well. God has a plan. If you read that story further, slaves were delivered, saw miracles after miracles and went on to prosper as a nation. God was there in it all, the good and bad. Just my thoughts....

[WarTim 3,208]

Wealth distribution? Who EARNED it? smh

[icanthearyou 3,856]

Wealth distribution? Who EARNED it? smh

EARN, is a very relative term, particularly in an environment in which capital ownership and wealth are consolidating, particularly in a credit driven economy. Again, fair and ethical competition is what we should protect, not the idea of pure, unfettered, unregulated capitalism.

A society driven purely by greed and self-interests, particularly one in which economic power can purchase political power, is not going to be much of a society. And, it's economy will fail. Like it or not, if we forget, or ignore, that the capacity to produce is limited by the ability to consume, we are programming failure into the system.

There is a fundamental difference between "earning" a fair profit in a competitive market and, demanding a premium profit in a highly concentrated market. It is also important to remember that dominating a market in such an environment is not always about "building a better mousetrap" but, the result of economic power. Is the ability to buy out potential competitors, stifle innovation, and inflate pricing the ultimate goal of capitalists and capitalism? Is that truly "earning" a profit or, exploiting economic power?

Maybe, just maybe, the hallmark, and real benefit to mankind, of capitalism is not greed but rather, lies in "fair" competition.

[TitanTiger 17,612]

I think it was Chesterton that said the biggest problem with capitalism is when you have too few capitalists. What he was saying there is that capitalism works at its best when the most people have a real stake of ownership in things. They aren't just hirelings. One person doesn't hold all the cards and gets to suppress wages because you need them way more than they need you.

[penguin149 354]

Some or all of those numbers must be adjusted. Minimum wage in 1984 was about $3.10/hour. At $7.50/hour now, that's a 242% increase.

As the New World Order takes shape and we have rushed towards a global economy, the difference in wealth distribution should be expected. Like water, wealth and the economy seeks its own level. As jobs are spread from the wealthier nations to the rest of the world, the standard of living in some countries will rise and others will drop. Being at the top, the USA had nowhere to go but down. Most poor countries have the very, very wealthy, a small middle class and then the masses are poor. The USA is quickly becoming that way. Our government seems to think that they can have it both ways....export jobs that sustained the middle class AND take enough away from the rich to give to the poor.

As to the rising cost of college, most universities have carte blanche....build new buildings, etc. and then ask the state legislatures for a tution hike which is almost always granted. People are lined up at the door willing to borrow $75,000+ to attend. Quit paying those ridiculous amounts and the colleges will have to lower tution and live in the real world.

[WarTim 3,208]

Some or all of those numbers must be adjusted. Minimum wage in 1984 was about $3.10/hour. At $7.50/hour now, that's a 242% increase.

As the New World Order takes shape and we have rushed towards a global economy, the difference in wealth distribution should be expected. Like water, wealth and the economy seeks its own level. As jobs are spread from the wealthier nations to the rest of the world, the standard of living in some countries will rise and others will drop. Being at the top, the USA had nowhere to go but down. Most poor countries have the very, very wealthy, a small middle class and then the masses are poor. The USA is quickly becoming that way. Our government seems to think that they can have it both ways....export jobs that sustained the middle class AND take enough away from the rich to give to the poor.

As to the rising cost of college, most universities have carte blanche....build new buildings, etc. and then ask the state legislatures for a tution hike which is almost always granted. People are lined up at the door willing to borrow $75,000+ to attend. Quit paying those ridiculous amounts and the colleges will have to lower tution and live in the real world.

Agree. Great post! Thanks.

[Proud Tiger 4,261]

penguin,,,,,,I also thank you for making your points. The comparison in the OP is apples and oranges.

[Proud Tiger 4,261]

Elle...I sure agree but too many people today don't think God is relevant to such things. They will find out in due time and think the heat outside today is like Winter.

[homersapien 10,202]

Wealth distribution? Who EARNED it? smh

As opposed to being born into it?

[alexava 6,882]

While the numbers are telling, I wonder if they used the same baseline for everything. In other words I am sure that the min wage number has been adjusted for inflation as well as the typical worker pay. Can the same be said about the other numbers? Maybe. I didn't look at the Labor dept website. With that said tuition and medical care increases are outrageous. Once you introduce a third party to the relationship (insurance for medical and ease of loans for tuition) costs skyrocket.

i asked the same question on The Beer Party, FB page when they posted this and got no response. i agree with the premise. it is true but when the meme does not explain the #s it loses credit by those who are on the fence in their opinion and understanding of the economics and math behind it.

[TitanTiger 17,612]

Some or all of those numbers must be adjusted. Minimum wage in 1984 was about $3.10/hour. At $7.50/hour now, that's a 242% increase.

As the New World Order takes shape and we have rushed towards a global economy, the difference in wealth distribution should be expected. Like water, wealth and the economy seeks its own level. As jobs are spread from the wealthier nations to the rest of the world, the standard of living in some countries will rise and others will drop. Being at the top, the USA had nowhere to go but down. Most poor countries have the very, very wealthy, a small middle class and then the masses are poor. The USA is quickly becoming that way. Our government seems to think that they can have it both ways....export jobs that sustained the middle class AND take enough away from the rich to give to the poor.

As to the rising cost of college, most universities have carte blanche....build new buildings, etc. and then ask the state legislatures for a tution hike which is almost always granted. People are lined up at the door willing to borrow $75,000+ to attend. Quit paying those ridiculous amounts and the colleges will have to lower tution and live in the real world.

Generally when the Dept. of Labor or a reputable financial source like Bloomberg talk about things like this, they choose present dollars as the baseline and adjust for inflation accordingly to tell you what minimum wage back then would be now, or what minimum wage now would amount to back then. And they'd do the same for the relative costs of the other things. I think you'll be on a futile search if you're looking for any study that shows the increase in the minimum wage or the average salary of workers has kept up with the increases in costs of the various other things listed. People are staying even or getting ahead on most stuff, they are falling behind.

[TexasTiger 9,668]

It results from the free market place. Should we do away with that is the question?

BS. CEO pay is rarely that closely tied to sustained success.

[TexasTiger 9,668]

Wealth distribution? Who EARNED it? smh

As opposed to being born into it? :dunno:/>

And even beyond that the deck is stacked to favor those who can influence legislation. Real risk in the marketplace is increasingly rare for the well heeled.