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Brilliant John Stewart Clip re: Rich and Poor

Are you fucking serious? 400 people control more wealth than the bottom 50% of society, and you don't think we have a serious wealth disparity?
 
TexasDeac10 said:
Eh, yeah, this is basically my opinion. The poor will always be with us, insofar as one segment of society will always make less than the other. Ideally we should close the gap in standards of living, but I'm of the opinion that the gap is narrower than some think.
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So having a fridge, a microwave, and an XBox means the gap is narrow?

You'd think people want the US to have Third World style wealth disparties.
 
Wealth gap is a convenient metric, but does it really capture what we're going for? I ask because I'm not sure. That link that Moon posted, where 400 people have as much wealth as half the country--who cares about those 400 people, seriously?

I care about the people whose lives suck. How their lives compare to people who have sums of money that I can't comprehend matters less than how their lives compare to what we think a decent life is. And what's a decent life? What's a good life?
 
Apparently a decent life is having a fridge or a microwave. A good life is having both. You're straight ballin' if you have both and a dishwasher.
 
ProfessorDeac said:
Wealth gap is a convenient metric, but does it really capture what we're going for? I ask because I'm not sure. That link that Moon posted, where 400 people have as much wealth as half the country--who cares about those 400 people, seriously?

I care about the people whose lives suck. How their lives compare to people who have sums of money that I can't comprehend matters less than how their lives compare to what we think a decent life is. And what's a decent life? What's a good life?
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Good points and questions. And what are the barriers to folks achieving a decent life. And which ones can and ought to be minimized or mitigated by government policy?
 
DeaconCav06 said:
A cell phone is not a necessity. Nor is a video game system or a dishwasher.

I've lived in plenty of apartments that didn't have a dishwasher. I personally agree that the tax system in this country is totally effed up, but I'm also jaded by working for Social Security and paying degenerate pieces of shit not to work.
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What crap. how does one know that "having a dishwasher" doesn't mean the apartment they live in has one?

How do we know that they didn't get them from Goodwill or Craigslist for $50?

This entrie exercise gives conservatives fodder to express how they feel opporessed.

It's totally disgusting.
 
Throw it in the pot, divide it up equally and let everybody start from go. Lets do it.
 
ConnorEl said:
Good points and questions. And what are the barriers to folks achieving a decent life. And which ones can and ought to be minimized or mitigated by government policy?
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Thanks. Problem is it's impossible to define "decent/good" without reference to how other people are living. Like Ph said on the other thread, it takes more to be middle class today than it did in the 50s.

OTOH, if you think the most important part of a good life is emotional/spiritual (as I do), then economics aren't the only thing. Probably don't want to go down that road, though.
 
RJKarl said:
What crap. how does one know that "having a dishwasher" doesn't mean the apartment they live in has one?

How do we know that they didn't get them from Goodwill or Craigslist for $50?

This entrie exercise gives conservatives fodder to express how they feel opporessed.

It's totally disgusting.
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I don't know what your post means other than you probably found a word in what I said to disagree with but did so in a manner that didn't actually address what I said.

I think the "Poor" in quotations was terrible. But when people are saying that ALL of the things mentioned were necessities is ridiculous. I love having a dishwasher, but I also lived without one for three years. You know what I did? Washed them by hand.
 
DeaconCav06 said:
I don't know what your post means other than you probably found a word in what I said to disagree with but did so in a manner that didn't actually address what I said.

I think the "Poor" in quotations was terrible. But when people are saying that ALL of the things mentioned were necessities is ridiculous. I love having a dishwasher, but I also lived without one for three years. You know what I did? Washed them by hand.
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yes a dishwasher is not a necessity, but also they identified on 25% having one (compared to a higher percentage having phones and refrigerators).

On the cell phone issue, it is almost a necessity if you are looking for employment. For someone who is somewhat transient, whether they stay with family or shelters, having a consistent phone number is pretty important. Land lines are basically useless in this situation and a person can easily get a pay as you go phone for ~$20/ month. It's not like all those cited with cell phones are rolling around with iphones.

Do some (if not most) of those who are lower income/no income make poor financial decisions? Yes, and some effort to teach budgeting/prioritization is important. But to cite some of these things as reasons the poor aren't really poor is ridiculous.

What's more frivolous, a cell phone or a second house?
 
What would be the point of saving money by not having a cell phone? Who would hire, date, socialize with someone who doesn't have a cell phone in 2011?

If you're that poor, a cell phone is one the first things you buy with the little money you've saved.

And do landlords charge extra for apartments with dishwashers? If only 25% have them given how common they are, that's pretty freaking poor.
 
Just all part of the class warfare demonize the poor games that Fox is a master at.
 
what if you need to contact someone who is out of hearing range? wouldn't a cell phone be a necessity then, you know, if you were too far away from the person with whom you wished to speak to hear them?

jeez, some of you have a really skewed perspective.

is a wristwatch a necessity? what about a hat, is a hat a necessity? how about a razor? I mean, you can work a job with a beard.

where so you crazies draw the line?
 
I wonder

When I read threads like this. Seems as if in the 90's the profs were the liberal ones and the students outside of a very very very small even for Wake minority were right wing or moderate dems....

Did the student population change or was that minority just more focused on internet message boards? I mean it seems as if on scout it was 60-40 con vs lib and over here it seems either the inverse or a straight split.

Just a thought since I'm at work trying to break through the capitalist overlords to obtain wealth and power..

uhmmmmm wealth and power....
 
I was going to complain that this board wasn't named the liberal circle jerk forum, then remembered it essentially is by being called RJKarl's political asylum. Complaint withdrawn
 
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