Why Are American Doctors Paid So Damn Much?

[hfojvt]

116. that becomes even more ridiculous then

Now, it is not "the 1%" it is what "the 0.5%"?

As I have said before, even the 1% does not get all of the pie, nor even a vast majority of the pie.

See, I worry myself about the people at the bottom, the ones who are getting squeezed, getting trampled, getting left behind in the rat race. Well, it is not just some tiny "predator class" that does the trampling, that does the squeezing.

The bottom 50% gets a very small, and shrinking piece of the economic pie, not because some tiny sliver at the top is taking it all. Nope. It is the ENTIRE top 50% that is taking the rest of the pie and leaving only a tiny sliver for the bottom 50% and even less for the bottom 25%.

I have done these calculations before. The average income of the bottom 50% of taxpayers is (or was in 2007) - $15,287. That group probably includes a lot of teenagers who file taxes.

The average income of the next 40% is $61,890. The average income of the next 5% is $165,389.

Now, let's take away ALL the income of the "top 1%" even though that group includes a lot of workers (does a CEO count? After all, he/she does a job. And so does a pro football player. And so does Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly. Are they NOT part of that predator class, because they work for a living?) Anyway take away all their income and give it to the bottom 50%.

How much does each of them get? About $28,000. Which I am sure would have them jumping for joy. But notice that it would only raise their average income up to $43,000. Well short of the $61,890 that the top half averages. To say nothing of the $165,389 that the 90-95th percentile averages.

And to say nothing of the $227,956 that the 95th to 99th percentile averages.

Oh, and sure those people provide services. Important services. But who pays for those services? A whole lot of people who don't make as much money. The big slice of the pie going to those in the top 10% simply DOES come out of our pocket.

But what the heck. Why should I begrudge the pound of flesh they take out of my hide? Why not give them two or three pounds just for the heck of it? Just in the name of solidarity, let the poor worker gladly give more to the rich worker. After all, we are all equal.

Some are just more equal than others.