Is Increasing Inequality Acceptable If Everyone Benefits?

[jz92wjaz]

We've had years of growth in the past without high inequality. An economic decline is one way to lessen inequality (the wealthy invest more money in the markets than the poor do), but it's obviously not a good way to do it. There are certainly other ways to minimize inequality that don't leave the poor worse off.

Inequality and growth appear to be correlated, but I can't think of a good argument for why high inequality would cause greater growth, or medium to low inequality would cause a decline and harm the poor.

 

[russ_watters]

Inequality and growth appear to be correlated, but I can't think of a good argument for why high inequality would cause greater growth, or medium to low inequality would cause a decline and harm the poor.[re-ordered for flow]

We've had years of growth in the past without high inequality.

Yes, but have we had growth without growing inequality? Inequality doesn't corellate to growth rate it correlates to the level of economic development -- at least it has for the past 60 years or so in the US (and in other examples, such as China).

An economic decline is one way to lessen inequality (the wealthy invest more money in the markets than the poor do), but it's obviously not a good way to do it.

So, then, the other side of the coin: if a declining economy with declining inequality is a bad thing, then why isn't a rising economy with rising inequality a good thing?

There are certainly other ways to minimize inequality that don't leave the poor worse off.

Perhaps. I'd be curious to know what they are.

 

[Collin237]

Despite tax rates falling for the rich, I think most people would agree that tax policy in most of the developed world is quite progressive...

The problem isn't what the policy is, but that some people can avoid paying what the policy says they should.

 

[StatGuy2000]

I know that this post is very late, but this Wikipedia article regarding the work of complexity economist Sam Bowles is of relevance to the question of inequality and economic success of nations.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Bowles_(economist)

Here is his website, which have several articles related to the emergence of economic inequality.

http://tuvalu.santafe.edu/~bowles/

http://tuvalu.santafe.edu/~bowles/2002JEP.pdf

 

[jedishrfu]

Over time the inequality of things changes and so this thread has too. It has had a long glorious history of posts and so its time to close it, say goodbye and wait from someone anew to create a more contemporary thread on the same topic someday.

Thanks to everyone for contributing here.

Jedi