It's Official!!

The NY Times  had a piece last Thursday the 12th that reported on the results of the recent Pew Research Center poll.  About 2/3's of Americans now believe there are "strong conflicts" between rich and poor in the US.  This conflict now eclipses racial strife between immigrants and native born Americans as the source of our greatest  tension. The article continues to say that the message from the Occupy Wall Street movement "may be seeping into the national consciousness". In the last survey in 2009,  47 percent of Americans thought class inequality was the biggest conflict, with immigration being the biggest challenge.  The new survey represents a 50% increase in public opinion regarding the issues surrounding income inequality.

The  Sunday Times had a front page piece on who and where across the US the 1% represent.  In Stamford, Connecticut, for instance, you have to earn $908, 000 to be included in the local 1% ;  in  Jamestown NY earning $176,00 will get you into the local 1%.  There is a long and detailed exploration with maps of what professions and jobs the top earners have and where they live.

The discussion has entered into the political arena as well, with the Republicans arguing over whether Romney the millionaire, created or destroyed jobs in his tenure at Bain Capital.  Americans are beginning to understand that some of the policies that the Republicans advocate, dismantling regulations and unions and keeping taxes low for the wealthy are in part responsible for the growing divide of the rich and poor.  This awakening might affect the chance of a Republican win in November. The median income for top earners is soaring while that of the average household has declined.

My point in bringing all this to your attention is that whenever you hear it said that the Occupy Movement was a failure because they did not have a specific goal, leader or agenda, the Pew Center poll and the pages of the NY Times  are refuting that notion.  It has come to 2/3's of Americans attention, in part because of the Occupy Movement, that there is income inequality here in the US and that the trend is moving towards more of the same.  The question becomes what to do about it.