The United States of Inequality

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Crimsonflyboy said:
Inequality is not the same thing as injustice.
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That’s right!!! Besides, people don’t want economic equality, otherwise there would be no incentive to go to school and learn and to better yourself and society.

God gave individuals varying degrees of knowledge, skills, abilities, and attractiveness; and these all translate into varying degrees of creativeness and hence income and wealth. We are reminded that we have to use our “talents”[1]. Man is made in the image and likeness of God. God likes to create, hence man likes to create. In order to make people equal, you have to take away their rights, especially the right to be creative. If a person cannot benefit from his creativeness, he will cease being creative. “It’s a lot easier to make a dumb pretty girl smart that to make a smart ugly girl pretty.”[2] That’s why Pareto said, “If incomes are equalized, they will be equalized at a low level.”

It never ceases to amaze me that foremost among those advocating an equal “distribution”[3] of wealth are none other than college professors who have their own levels of inequality.

[1] A term I do not like to use in this context because a “talent” is an ability of unusually high quality. Not everyone has talent.

[2]“Love is a Fallacy”, from The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, by Max Schuleman

[3] Is wealth “distributed” or is it created?
 
Monte_RCMS said:
Buffett is not “really” a gambler, because he gets the government to “fix” the tax laws to benefit HIM.
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👍 👍 👍 👍

Buffett is for higher taxes on rich people, especially estate taxes. One might ask why he would want to pay more taxes. His company, Berkshire-Hathaway, owns an insurance company [among others]. When rich people are facing huge estate taxes, one of the ways they avoid it is … you guessed it … buy more life insurance!

For his services to his company, he uses another neat trick. He takes a modest salary plus he gives himself stock which he can sell and pay only capital gains taxes on. Try to claim only capital gains taxes on any part of your income.
 
nosmelc said:
equality is no longer a consideration in decisions that effect the economy, if it ever was.
numbers are the be all and end all. human decisions are based on how to manipulate the numbers to produce more wealth PERIOD. that is why we have for profit health care, because in all business, increasing profit is the only thing that matters and in our world everything from health care to art to food is business. love thy neighbor need not apply, there is no room at the inn.
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And the solution specifically is … ?
 
nosmelc said:
equality is no longer a consideration in decisions that effect the economy, if it ever was.
numbers are the be all and end all. human decisions are based on how to manipulate the numbers to produce more wealth PERIOD. that is why we have for profit health care, because in all business, increasing profit is the only thing that matters and in our world everything from health care to art to food is business. love thy neighbor need not apply, there is no room at the inn.
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Numbers are merely a language.

If you didn’t use numbers, then how would you know?

I mean, if you just use words, then they could mean just about anything. The Church as lots of different words that describe how words are used to mislead.

Profit is nothing more than the difference between revenues and expenses.
 
You know what, I do believe in capitalism and in a free but regulated economy, but I must say, if this world was perfect, “all things being equal”, as they say, we wouldn’t be debating this. In a perfect world, there would be no such thing as money, or even barter. There would be no greed, no inequality, no “classes.” No one would ever ask, “what is in this for me? What do I get out of this? You need food because you are starving, and sure, I have more food than I need, but still, what do I get in return?” We would give to those in need when we can not to get something in return, but simply to help that person. This is what Jesus preached. Now you may say that that could deplete resources more quickly because there would be no way to measure and regulate them, but I would trust people to be smart about it.

Of course that would be in a perfect world. And this will never be a perfect world until Jesus returns.

-Chris
 
You should check out the book Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich. It’s an excellent book. It’s all about this sort of thing. The author goes and works in the low-wage world for a while and writes about her experiences. It also won some Catholic book award.
 
America is a protestant nation founded mostly on protestant/evangelical beleif system, and of course with majority protestants.

Most people prefer America over any other nation, definitely any Cathlic nation, for immigration. Those who have immigrated do not return from America either. So something is wrong Mr.Catholics. Clean your house (sorry your religion and thinking) first before commenting negatively about America.

Catholics who have done most atrocities - officially and by Popes - in the name of Christendom have no rights whatever to criticise others. Just keep quite.
 
Angela77 said:
You should check out the book Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America by Barbara Ehrenreich. It’s an excellent book. It’s all about this sort of thing. The author goes and works in the low-wage world for a while and writes about her experiences. It also won some Catholic book award.
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Thanks Angela and Cmforte.
Not a happy thread this.
Ita takes a heck of a lot of humility to be able to admit and face up to the pride of our selfish selves…we pray!
Peace, Carlan
 
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