The distribution of wealth is, simply put, the way in which the wealth and income of a nation are divided among its population, or the way in which the wealth and income of the world are divided among nations. From 1989 to 2016, the income inequality in the United States has more than doubled as the rich keep accumulating more and more wealth while the poor keep getting kicked further in the dirt. Some of the predominant reasons for this is the decline of labour unions, technological unemployment and widespread globalization leading to massive redundancies.
In the recent US Presidential elections, economic inequality was a huge point of contention between the two candidates who had starkly different views. With a law signed back in 2017 under the Trump administration, the wealthy were able to escape from a dramatically huge tax bill. This situation was highlighted when The New York Times recently exposed Donald Trump of not paying his income taxes for the last two decades. Meanwhile, Biden is a staunch advocate for tax hikes and strictly against the regressive nature of tax under the current administration.
However, this problem extends well beyond the United States. The Global Wealth Report by Credit Suisse shows that the richest 1% control around 44% of the global wealth. Living conditions around the world are vastly unequal, as some live in mansions while some live on roads.
Overall, income inequality mainly leads to a faltering economic growth, increased monopolization, an inefficient workforce and a downtrodden majority fumbling for scraps with the wealth takes all.
And that’s how the 1% lives.
Sources
https://www.investopedia.com/joe-biden-s-economic-plan-save-the-middle-class-4769869
Images
https://www.economist.com/united-states/2015/08/01/living-with-inequality
https://equitablegrowth.org/eight-graphs-that-tell-the-story-of-u-s-economic-inequality/
Feature Image: AXIOS VISUALS
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