Pretty terrible isn’t it? Most people don’t even know what that means. Average vs. Median or Mean.
It should be unsustainable. I will freely admit that that the haves have hoarded far too much and that it is not sustainable.
What amazes me though are the numbers of large fine houses and $40K plus cars. Is is all on extended credit?
Many years ago, in American History class at the tender age of 17, while studying the Great Depression I formed a view that it was all because the money got stacked up on one side of the ledger. The haves had too much and could not move or spend it all and it was not being reinvested and so not enough consumption going on.... Too few dollars chasing too many goods .... Depression.
For some reason I’m reminded of the parable of Talents. We now have money being created from nothing. Money not reinvested in growth or value added products but just so many empty bets on the price of a stock that has little underlying value. Facebook comes to mind for some reason?
The Greatest Generation came home and produced stuff. They made something of value from something of less value by adding labor and brains.
Sounds like you are a marxist. The whole point of inequality is that someone can create a job for the one who has none.
Contrary to what Hillary said, it is the businesses that create jobs, and those people usually have the money to drive that $40K plus car.
Without those people and their wise use of money, savings and ability to make money...the majority of the US citizens would be living in poverty, period. That’s capitalism.
As Winston Churchill pointed out “Capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings, whereas Socialism is the equal sharing of misery.”
Personally I like having something to aspire to, and not be wallowing in the mud with the rest of the pigs.
Also innovation and creativity. The way things are structured now, it's almost impossible for someone to make a living by creating something of value.
The macro-solution has been to create low-income consumers who will spend everything they have, work for very little cash which is subsidized by credit transfers of funny money for their food, medical, housing subsidies. How is this any different from slavery? The new slaves might be willing invaders, but most don't rise above following orders and being given survival.
Another thing I've noticed, that in spite of expensive tastes of the top 25% (or so) is that people don't have much they treasure. The gold heirlooms were turned in to pay for a new smart phone or whatever. Books, music, photographs, new toys, aren't "stuff"; they're computer simulations. Clothes aren't classic, long-lasting, natural fiber, high quality....they're for the moment, to be replaced next year. What will the antiques be from this era? Poof. With all that money spent on smart phones, cable TV, music downloads, books on Kindle, photos on the phone, fast food meals, etc, is anything real and lasting? Is there anything that evokes memories and ties us to the past? What about what's being built? ancient Roman construction, Egypt's pyramids, fantastic medieval castles and churches still stand. What's being built today is so shoddy it mostly has to be torn down and built again in twenty (or even less) years.
When archaeologists look back on us from the future (if there is a future) they will see a civilization that declined so badly and accomplished so little of value, that it left nothing behind.
When the globalist nightmare comes tumbling down, so what? Maybe when people return to tribes and communities and extended families and local economies we can start all over. Gosh, I hope so.