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Americans Want to Live in a Much More Equal Country (They Just Don't Realize It) (Barf warning)
The Atlantic ^ | August 2, 2012 | Dan Arielly

Posted on 08/02/2012 11:12:01 AM PDT by C19fan

The inequality of wealth and income in the U.S. has become an increasingly prevalent issue in recent years. One reason for this is that the visibility of this inequality has been increasing gradually for a long time--as society has become less segregated, people can now see more clearly how much other people make and consume. Owing to urban life and the media, our proximity to one another has decreased, making the disparity all too obvious. In addition to this general trend, the financial crisis, with all of its fall out, shined a spotlight on the salaries of bankers and financial workers relative to that of most Americans. And on top of these, and most recently, the upcoming presidential election has raised questions of social justice and income disparities, bringing the issues into focus even more.

......................................................

We found that the ideal distribution described by this representative sample of Americans was dramatically more equal than exists anywhere in the world, with 32% of wealth belonging to the wealthiest quintile down to 11% by the poorest (see Figure 3).

(Excerpt) Read more at theatlantic.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society
KEYWORDS: inequality; marx; rawls
Implicit in the article is Marx's idea of false consciousness. The author is explicit about his admiration of Rawls. If the author polled the same people about the massive re-distributive policies that would be required to achieve this so-called "preferred" distribution of income they would I am sure get shot down. You see this type of crap all the time. People might have these head in the clouds ideas of utopia they would tell a pollster they approve of but when it comes to the details they turn negative.
1 posted on 08/02/2012 11:12:13 AM PDT by C19fan
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To: C19fan
The first sentence of the article:

"The inequality of wealth and income in the U.S. has become an increasingly prevalent issue in recent years."

Despite millions, perhaps hundreds of millions of dollars spent trying to convince Americans of the truth of this statement I believe the effort has failed.

But a lie told often enough ...

2 posted on 08/02/2012 11:21:59 AM PDT by InterceptPoint (.)
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To: C19fan

I’ll take a look at being tolerant and respectful of others (homos) when they are tolerant and respectful of my beliefs. Until then, I’ll push back when they push me.


3 posted on 08/02/2012 11:23:00 AM PDT by jeffc (Welcome to the United Socialist States of America)
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To: C19fan
In addition to this general trend, the financial crisis, with all of its fall out, shined a spotlight on the salaries of bankers and financial workers relative to that of most Americans.

And yet that same financial crisis did not equally shine a spotlight on the salaries of media and Hollywood types to that of most Americans. I guess there really is an equality crisis!

4 posted on 08/02/2012 11:24:03 AM PDT by Dahoser (Separation of church and state? No, we need separation of media and state.)
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To: C19fan

At one time the Atlantic was a somewhat interesting magazine. Sure, it slanted left, but it tried to be thoughtful instead of doctrinaire.

Now it’s just another playpen of the jejune, self-infatuated, self-deluded left.


5 posted on 08/02/2012 11:25:04 AM PDT by mojito
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To: C19fan

A more equal country in which the self-styled “aggrieved” STFU about how disadvantaged they are while fattening themselves on food stamps and welfare... and actually get their sorry asses into some kind of productive situation..

A more equal country in which the 49.5% who aren’t paying federal income taxes take on THEIR share of the load..

A more equal country in which race-pimping programs like Affirmative Action go by the wayside...

A more equal country in which all enterprises are allowed to operate fully on meritocracy, rather than government-mandated “flexible standards”...

A more equal country in which government backs its intrusive self out of everything not stipulated by the U.S. Constitution...

THAT “more equal country?”

Damn well right I want to that more equal country!!!!


6 posted on 08/02/2012 11:26:30 AM PDT by ScottinVA (Buying Drain-O requires photo I.D... yet voting doesn't???)
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To: C19fan
The people pushing the idea that it is some societal function to level humanity are basically compulsion driven. While there are demagogues who deliberately play to the basest of human emotions--who try always to stir envy & resentment;--Lenin's proverbial "useful idiots," are largely compulsive neurotics, seeking to live in a fantasy world, where they do not feel threatened.

Of course, there is nothing altruistic in the Egalitarian pursuit. The reality, demonstrated by human experience, not theory, is that Egalitarian Collectivism Sabotages Human Potential.

William Flax

7 posted on 08/02/2012 11:27:19 AM PDT by Ohioan
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To: C19fan
In addition to this general trend, the financial crisis, with all of its fall out, shined a spotlight on the salaries of bankers and financial workers relative to that of most Americans.

Actually I couldn't care less about their wealth except when they come hat in hand (or more likely gun to the economy's head) and demand money from me. Once that happens I start looking at them the same as people using their food stamps to buy lobsters and haul them out to a new SUV. Beggars shouldn't get to live better than the taxpayers, whether the beggars are welfare queens or bankers.

8 posted on 08/02/2012 11:28:02 AM PDT by KarlInOhio (Recycled Olympic tagline Shut up, Bob Costas. Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!)
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To: C19fan

>> People might have these head in the clouds ideas of utopia they would tell a pollster they approve of but when it comes to the details they turn negative.

Reminds me of the story of a Frenchman who had an excellent butler who happened to be a communist. The butler had a longstanding agreement with his employer to have the second Tuesday evening of every month off, so he could go to the Communist party meeting.

One such Tuesday evening, the employer noted that the butler’s light was on, so he went up to the butler’s room to check on him. He found the butler reading the newspaper.

Employer: “Why aren’t you at your regular meeting? Are you feeling OK?”

Butler: “I’m fine... I’m not going to the meetings any more.”

E: “Why not?”
B: “At the last meeting, it was proven that if all the wealth in France were divided equally, everyone would have one thousand francs.”

E: “So?”
B: “So... *I* have *five* thousand francs.”


9 posted on 08/02/2012 11:28:24 AM PDT by Nervous Tick (Love the cult, respect the leader, but I simply can't drink the koolaid and die.)
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To: mojito

How’s their circulation ?


10 posted on 08/02/2012 11:29:14 AM PDT by Eric in the Ozarks (I didn't post this. Someone else did.)
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To: C19fan

i believe there is a definite misinterpretation of equal and fair... is it fair that someone gets to keep what he’s worked for? yes.

is it fair that every one has an equal opportunity? yes.

is life fair? no.

can life be equal? no.

governments aren’t imposed on people to make things “equal”

it is not for anyone else to define for others.

teeman


11 posted on 08/02/2012 11:32:25 AM PDT by teeman8r (Armageddon won't be pretty, but it's not like it's the end of the world.)
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To: C19fan

The Atlantic...is a leftist democrat marxist socialist rag.


12 posted on 08/02/2012 11:36:23 AM PDT by Osage Orange (8675309)
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To: C19fan

Here’s the way to the good life: Go to the best schools you can, save all the money you can, find something you would enjoy doing for the rest of your life, put in all the hours necessary. Keep reinvesting your profits. Then, maybe you might reach the top. Many don’t. The ones that do will try and try again until the success comes.


13 posted on 08/02/2012 11:44:30 AM PDT by New Jersey Realist (America: home of the free because of the brave)
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To: C19fan
You could give a house and the same amount of money to two people living next door to one another, and within a year one of them could be living in a well-kept, clean house and the other living in a pig sty inside and out.

What then?

Give less to the responsible person and give it to the pig?

14 posted on 08/02/2012 11:49:46 AM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum (Government is the religion of the collectivists.)
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To: Eric in the Ozarks
Circulation is under 500,000.

However, they started running a profit for the first time in their history in 2010, after they moved to the far left. Mostly, this has been ascribed to their web version, which added lefty loons like Andrew “Trigger” Sullivan to the blog roles.

The New Yorker, similarly, has begun turning a profit after it moved to the far left about a decade ago.

15 posted on 08/02/2012 12:00:40 PM PDT by mojito
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To: C19fan
By Royal Decree:

“No one shall earn less than 100k per year and no more than 1000k per year.”

O.K., that's taken care of, let's move on to the more difficult problems.

16 posted on 08/02/2012 12:25:22 PM PDT by count-your-change (You don't have to be brilliant, not being stupid is enough.)
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To: C19fan
Owing to urban life and the media, our proximity to one another has decreased, making the disparity all too obvious

Rush was just talking about Obamah and liberals in general hating urbanites and their exodus from mostly Democrat-controlled hell-holes like Detroit, Chicago where there is an Aurora, Co. massacre every week.

17 posted on 08/02/2012 12:48:35 PM PDT by TexasCajun
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To: C19fan

Those who are ignorant of history are doomed to repeat it.

This benighted author, and a good many others around the nation, have either forgotten - or more probably never learned - that the commissars are always more well-heeled than the proles.

The communist fantasy lives on in the minds of the ignorant and unschooled.


18 posted on 08/02/2012 1:22:07 PM PDT by Jack Hammer
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To: C19fan
we want much more equality than both what we have and what we think we have.

This view is a result of Marxist doctrines which permeate the contemporary educational system, in history books,in so-called social-science courses, in literature courses, in every field and in every way in which it is possible to inculcate them Marxist doctrine claims to see as essential the mere existence of inequalities in wealth and income, absolutely irrespective of their nature an cause. It ignores the radical, day-and-night difference between economic inequality under capitalism in a free society and economic inequity under serfdom and slavery. Specifically, what it ignores is the fact that under capitalism economic inequality rest on differences in productive contribution, which contribution operates to the benefit of all.

19 posted on 08/02/2012 2:07:41 PM PDT by mjp ((pro-{God, reality, reason, egoism, individualism, natural rights, limited government, capitalism}))
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To: C19fan
One reason for this is that the visibility of this inequality has been increasing gradually for a long time

Leftism is mostly about visible size envy. It often develops from unresolved childhood trauma related to birthday parties. "No fair! His cake is bigger than mine!", "I didn't get invited!", "He said I couldn't touch his his new electric train!". They never get over it. Leftist adults envy neighbors with bigger houses, bigger SUVs, bigger families. The intensity of leftist envy is strongly correlated with population density.

20 posted on 08/02/2012 3:01:06 PM PDT by Reeses (Sustainable energy? Let's first have sustainable government.)
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