How can so many Americans be having such a rough time when the nation's overall wealth is soaring?

[midnight]

"This chill-out-about-the-rich message now has some powerful new wind behind it. Koch Industries, the money-making engine of the billionaire Koch-brother empire, has just begun a nationwide TV ad campaign that more or less urges us to "end the divide" by giving billionaires everything they want.

The new Koch "end the divide" ads feature swelling music and fetching images of hard-working average Americans of all races and creeds. About the only thing noble missing from these incredibly slick and polished ad spots: the truth.

For that truth, for an explanation of what's really gone wrong with the American economy, we need to turn to an another new contribution to America's political discourse, a just-published study from the Washington, DC-based Economic Policy Institute."


"If we want to ensure that the living standards of the vast majority rise in the next decade," the EPI analyst concludes, "we need to embrace policies explicitly aimed at progressively redistributing income."

http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/36503-the-koch-brothers-cue-the-music

[LonePirate]

1. Median wealth is not soaring but that is seldom, if ever, reported.

[midnight]

17. Pew research lists the median income of upper-income as 174,625.

DECEMBER 9, 2015

"Households in all income tiers experienced gains in income from 1970 to 2014. But the gains for middle- and lower-income households lagged behind the gains for upper-income households.

The median income of upper-income households increased from $118,617 in 1970 to $174,625 in 2014, or by 47%. That was significantly greater than the 34% gain for middle-income households, whose median income rose from $54,682 to $73,392. Lower-income households fell behind even more as their median income increased by only 28% over this period.

Although 2014 incomes are generally higher than in 1970, all households experienced a lengthy period of decline in the 21st century thanks to the 2001 recession and the Great Recession of 2007-09. The greatest loss was felt by lower-income households, whose median income fell 9% from 2000 to 2014, followed by a 4% loss for middle-income households and a 3% loss for upper-income households."

[GummyBearz]

21. Well that sucks

"The median income of upper-income households increased from $118,617 in 1970 to $174,625 in 2014, or by 47%. That was significantly greater than the 34% gain for middle-income households, whose median income rose from $54,682 to $73,392. Lower-income households fell behind even more as their median income increased by only 28% over this period.

...

The greatest loss was felt by lower-income households, whose median income fell 9% from 2000 to 2014, followed by a 4% loss for middle-income households and a 3% loss for upper-income households."

[One_Life_To_Give]

23. 1970 middle income house was Single Earner

Married women were not nearly as well represented in the workforce in 1970. So what was once the earnings of a single parent now requires two with a large payout for daycare. That 73K would feel alot better if it didn't require a second wage earner to get there.

[hobbit709]

2. Because 1% got 99% of the gains and the 99% get to share the 1% left over.

[elleng]

3. Clearly depends on definition of 'overall wealth.'

Some info:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/111678441

http://www.democraticunderground.com/111678420

http://www.democraticunderground.com/111678392

http://www.democraticunderground.com/111678264

[Gman]

4. They have been concerned about a middle class revolt

This is their way to try to stop it.

[hopemountain]

27. my victimizing the working class and the poor.

the koch brothers are not human.

[Old Codger]

5. The real people

Know it is not really happening for them.................

[villager]

6. Because economic justice is *not* an issue you secretly elitist, or left-wing, or right-wing person,

you!

Or whatever the latest top-down attack meme is to discredit "such talk..."

[Downwinder]

7. Must be due to inflation. I don't have more of anything

than I had 10 years ago.

[KG]

8. there are long lines at the theaters in Manhattan! and after all isn't that what's really important?

[Rex]

9. Too much wealth concentrated into too few hands.

And it appears to only be getting worse. We need some liberals on the SCOTUS to help fix the situation. Of course separating big biz from politics in next to impossible now. Thanks to a few wealthy families.

[midnight]

18. From what I see and hear….I agree.

[OnlyTheGood]

10. Capitalism working exactly as it's intended. Concentrates wealth in the hands of an

oligarchy. See Das Kapital

[rhett o rick]

15. The Progressives are trying to fight the growing wealth gap that will kill many Americans.

Sadly it isn't a priority with all Democrats.

[OnlyTheGood]

31. The statistics are irrefutable. The most recent crisis in post-industrial capitalism has

caused suicide rates among males in their 50s (my age cohort) to spike sharply upward. Meanwhile the number of American children living in third-world poverty (less than $2/day in household cash income) has also soared. The time for a Guaranteed Annual Income is long past due.

[MowCowWhoHow III]

11. Mean vs Median

http://www.diffen.com/difference/Mean_vs_Median

[trof]

12. I guess my boat don't float.

"They" say a rising tide raises all boats.
My boat didn't rise.
How about yours?

[rhett o rick]

16. Rising tides lift all yachts and swamps the dinghy's of the 99%.

[bvar22]

13. Some more information:

Korean Free Trade Deal devastating for US Workers
(Prototype for the TPP)

What happened to the 70,000 jobs that the Korea Free Trade deal was supposed to create? They never materialized. Instead, U.S. workers lost 40,000 jobs in the first year of the agreement.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/larry-cohen/koreaus-free-trade-agreem_b_4965492.html

Meet the TPP: Crony capitalism on a global scale
https://represent.us/action/tpp/

CHARTS: The Amazing Wealth Surge For The Top 0.1 Percent
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/the-amazing-wealth-surge-for-the-top-0-1-percent

Study: "Trade" Deal Would Mean a Pay Cut for 90% of U.S. Workers
http://citizen.typepad.com/eyesontrade/2013/09/the-verdict-is-in-the-trans-pacific-partnership-tpp-a-sweeping-free-trade-deal-under-negotiation-with-11-pacific-rim-coun.html

Retirement: A third have less than $1,000 put away
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2014/03/18/retirement-confidence-survey-savings/6432241/

95 percent of the economy’s gains have gone to the top 1 percent
http://billmoyers.com/2014/01/10/why-conservatives-old-divide-and-conquer-strategy-%E2%80%94-setting-working-class-against-the-poor-%E2%80%94-is-backfiring/

Billionaire wealth doubles since financial crisis
http://www.upi.com/blog/2013/11/12/Billionaire-wealth-doubles-since-financial-crisis/5011384268135/?spt=hts&or=12

The Top .01 Percent Reach New Heights
http://www.demos.org/blog/9/13/13/top-01-percent-reach-new-heights

The Totally Unfair And Bitterly Uneven 'Recovery,' In 12 Charts – HuffPo
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023662029


Wall Street will get away with massive wave of criminality of 2008 - Statute of Limitations
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/business-economy-financial-crisis/untouchables/supreme-court-ruling-a-blow-for-future-financial-crisis-cases/

Income gap widest ever: 95 Percent of Recovery Income Gains Have Gone to the Top 1 Percent
http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2013/09/10/one_percent_recovery_95_percent_of_gains_have_gone_to_the_top_one_percent.html

Older Workers:.Set Back by Recession, and Shut Out of Rebound
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/27/booming/for-laid-off-older-workers-age-bias-is-pervasive.html?smid=tw-share&_r=3&

Right now, forty percent of Americans make less than the minimum wage from 1968.
http://pac.petitions.moveon.org/sign/raise-the-minimum-wage-19/?source=search

Daily CEO Pay Now Exceeds the Average Worker's Annual Salary –
http://thecontributor.com/daily-ceo-pay-now-exceeds-us-workers-annual-salary

New Rule signals Kiss of Death for Pensions
http://www.cnbc.com/id/100694955

Wealthy win lion's share of major tax breaks
http://www.boston.com/business/news/2013/05/29/wealthy-win-lion-share-major-tax-breaks/Ua0UyYle21EUXub7g1suCI/story.html

Wealth gap widens as labor's share of income falls
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/wealth-gap-widens-labors-share-income-falls-1B6097385

Corporate Profits Hit Record High While Worker Wages Hit Record Low
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/12/03/1270541/corporate-profits-wages-record/?mobile=nc



THIS ^ does NOT happen by accident.
It is the predictable results of Economic & Trade Policies that favor the Top 1%.

[840high]

29. .Thanks for this.

[Vinca]

14. It's not rough if you're among the 1%.

And it wouldn't be so bad for the 99% if the 1% weren't such greedy pigs.

[rhett o rick]

19. Those politicians that campaign on "growing the economy" as a fix for the 99%'s financial

woes are trying to fool us. The economy has has been growing, but typical it's only growing for the 1%. Even if the 99%'s wealth was growing at the same pace as the 1% it won't help those struggling among us. The 1% has been ripping us off for decades and we need that wealth back to shore up the safety nets and rebuild our crumbling infrastructure. Plugging a loop-hole or two isn't going to save the 99%.

[pampango]

20. Wealth soared in the 1920's. The 99% did not benefit. FDR fixed that with progressive policies.

Modern countries with strong middle classes and equitable distributions of income still follow FDR's ideas - high/progressive taxes, legal support for strong unions, effective business regulation and a strong safety net.

The US does none of those things. It is not surprising that our middle class is suffering while our 1% laughs all the way to the bank.

[GummyBearz]

22. Sadly enough

We are doing what we always made fun of the republicans for doing. Voting against our own economic interests. A candidate that makes ~$250k/hour. Great idea.

[pampango]

24. I don't care about a candidate's wealth so much. FDR had it. Obama, not so much. Policies

are much more important.

I would have preferred Bernie but Hillary will be much better on taxes, unions, regulation and the safety net than the Donald who will be horrible on all of them.

[Gabi Hayes]

25. when's the last time a non rich republican ran for president?

when's the last time a dem rich guy ran for president?

an interesting corollary: when's the last time a president didn't become wealthy after leaving office?

[bvar22]

30. I don't believe Jimmy Carter has become RICH after leaving office.

If he has, it is only a side effect.

Democrat John Kerry was very RICH.
He ran for President in 2004.

[elleng]

26. US Low-Skill Males Drop Out Of Jobs Market.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1016161436

[unblock]

28. it's precisely because overall wealth has risen so much for decades that resentment is rising.

because the ultra-rich figured out how to get away with sharing less and less of it.

people would be frustrated with largely stagnant wages if we were all in it equally.

but to see more and more billionaires being created for doing little more than firing people and outsourcing and dodging taxes and getting congress to do their bidding, that really pisses people off!