Charts reveal shocking income inequality

"Some new data crunches show how the gap between rich and poor has widened into a chasm."

In the February 23, 2011 Yahoo! article, "Separate but unequal: Charts show growing rich-poor gap," Zachary Roth summarizes the Mother Jones article," It's the Inequality, Stupid" that appears in its March/April 2011 issue:

The Great Recession and the slump that followed have triggered a jobs crisis that's been making headlines since before President Obama was in office, and that will likely be with us for years. But the American economy is also plagued by a less-noted, but just as serious, problem: Simply put, over the last 30 years, the gap between rich and poor has widened into a chasm.
Gradual developments like this don't typically lend themselves to news coverage. But Mother Jones magazine has crunched the data on inequality, and put together a group of stunning new charts. Taken together, they offer a dramatic visual illustration of who's doing well and who's doing badly in modern America.
Here are three samples:
• This chart shows that the poorest 90 percent of Americans make an average of $31,244 a year, while the top 1 percent make over $1.1 million:

• According to this chart, most income groups have barely grown richer since 1979. But the top 1 percent has seen its income nearly quadruple:

• And this chart suggests most Americans have little idea of just how unequal income distribution is. And that they'd like things to be divvied up a lot more equitably:

To see the rest of these fascinating charts, click on over to Mother Jones.

Income Inequality - Country Comparisons

Income disparity since World War II.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gini_coefficient

Income Inequality is at an All Time High

"In 2007 the top .01 percent of American earners took home 6 percent of total U.S. wages, a figure that has nearly doubled since 2000."

In the August 14, 2009 article "Robbing us blind, income inequality at all time high" the Philadelphia Progressive Examiner comments:

Left essentially unnoticed because of the healthcare reform debate, continuing uncertainty about jobs and the economy was Emmanuel Saez report, released on August 5, 2009 reveals that we currently have the most extreme income disparity ever including the Gilded Era and just prior to the Great Depression. The paper written by this Berkeley professor covers data up to 2007 because it is using IRS numbers and those are essentially two years behind.

Paul Krugman on his blog, Conscience of a Liberal called the numbers, " truly amazing." He called this age an even more gilded age on 8-13-09.

Emanuel Saez called his article, Striking it Richer, evolution of the top incomes in the United States. He closes by asking if America is willing to accept income inequality and if not what reforms will be put into place.

Some of the more egregious statistics in this report are the statistics showing the total income captivation of the richest 10 percent of the population. From 1993 to 2007 the total has been 50% of all income leaving the other 90% to split up the other fifty percent. Under Bill Clinton this group captured 45% of the total. Under George Bush from 2002-2007 they have garnered 65% of the total income while the rest of us, the other 90% split up 35%. Still wonder why people can't make their house payments?

The wealthiest 1% of the population garnered 23% of all income in 2007 all by themselves. The wealthiest .01% (about 15,000) families garnered 6% all by themselves. Saez called 2007 a very good year for the rich.

The fact is that income inequality is a fact of life but this is such an unequal distribution that it is part and parcel of why we are facing serious economic issues including the possible bankruptcy of this nation. There is so much money in so few hands that our economy can't function. As a society we need to decide if we are going to have a third world economy just like Argentina where they have the same sort of income inequality. In actuality, all we are doing is reinstating Indentured servitude for MIddle Class America which is how our nation began.

Income Inequality Is At An All-Time High

"In 2007 the top .01 percent of American earners took home 6 percent of total U.S. wages, a figure that has nearly doubled since 2000."

The August 14, 2009 article "Income Inequality Is At An All-Time High: STUDY" on The Huffington Post reports:

Income inequality in the United States is at an all-time high, surpassing even levels seen during the Great Depression, according to a recently updated paper by University of California, Berkeley Professor Emmanuel Saez. The paper, which covers data through 2007, points to a staggering, unprecedented disparity in American incomes. On his blog, Nobel prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman called the numbers "truly amazing."

Though income inequality has been growing for some time, the paper paints a stark, disturbing portrait of wealth distribution in America. Saez calculates that in 2007 the top .01 percent of American earners took home 6 percent of total U.S. wages, a figure that has nearly doubled since 2000.

As of 2007, the top decile of American earners, Saez writes, pulled in 49.7 percent of total wages, a level that's "higher than any other year since 1917 and even surpasses 1928, the peak of stock market bubble in the 'roaring" 1920s.'"

Beginning in the economic expansion of the early 1990s, Saez argues, the economy began to favor the top tiers American earners, but much of the country missed was left behind. "The top 1 percent incomes captured half of the overall economic growth over the period 1993-2007," Saes writes.

Despite a rising stock market, largely growing employment and a historic housing boom things were not nearly so rosy for the rest of U.S. workers. This trend, according to Saez, only accelerated during the George W. Bush's tenure as President:

"...while the bottom 99 percent of incomes grew at a solid pace of 2.7 percent per year from 1993-2000, these incomes grew only 1.3 percent per year from 2002-2007. As a result, in the economic expansion of 2002-2007, the top 1 percent captured two thirds of income growth."