In a country whose constitution boasts that "all men are created equal," there is at least one area in which inequality is not only present, but constantly growing &- income. The latest census data shows that the income gap between the rich and the poor in America has grown to the widest ever recorded, with the disparity ranking as the highest of any industrialized Western country.
The census figures indicate that the richest 20 percent of Americans receive 49.4 percent of all income in the U.S., while those living below the poverty line, who make up about 14 percent of the population, receive only 3.4 percent of the national income. Additionally, the wealthiest Americans added to their incomes last year, despite the recession, while the income of those at the median line slipped.
It is incomprehensible that in the richest country in the world, income inequality is a problem that is getting worse, instead of better. Instead of moving toward the elimination of poverty, the old adage is coming true &- the rich are getting richer, while the poor are getting poorer.
These new findings are further evidence that this country cannot afford tax cuts for the rich at this time. While they should be extended for the majority of the population, the tax cuts should be discontinued for the wealthiest three percent of Americans in order to help combat the problem of income inequality. This money should be put directly into programs and initiatives aimed at helping reduce the income gap and reduce poverty nationwide.
Any time a mention is made of anything that can be construed as redistribution of wealth, Americans get up in arms. But the fact is, we as a nation have a responsibility to help those who need it. And when there is so much wealth concentrated in such a small sector of the population, those who can afford it should be willing to contribute a portion of their income toward helping those who are working hard and still barely scraping by.
With so much effort and aid poured into poverty overseas, we must remember not to neglect those who are destitute within our own borders. We tried the trickle-down effect with the Bush-era tax cuts. It didn't work. The disparity between the rich and the poor only continued to grow. It's time to try a different approach.
This is an account occasionally used by the Daily Free Press editors to post archived posts from previous iterations of the site or otherwise for special circumstance publications. See authorship info on the byline at the top of the page.
