Is there a solution for Economic Inequality?

The good thing is that in USA and other developed countries, the chance is there to break out of poverty by trying. It is not so in every other country. Do you think the Mexicans willing to risk their lives crossing the border are doing it for fun? When the rate of unemployment is 60%, and you graduate from school only to join the unemployed, how do you attribute poverty to lack of ambition?

Well this forum is for elite traders. The capitalist system has at least opened one avenue for everyone that has some skill and diligence to make money (hopefully you have some starting capital). It does not matter what country you come from, when you become aware of the markets, you can turn things around for yourself with diligence
 
Quote from gnome:

In America, everyone has the opportunity to get rich. That is, other than taxes, the Gummint does not stand in the way of people succeeding financially. So if you want to get rich, DO SOMETHING which is valuable enough to deserve getting rich.

Are you mentally damaged?

Saying everyone has the opportunity to get rich in America is like saying everyone had a chance to get out of New Orleans before the flood....sure there were some who could have an didn't, but others truly had no means of getting out and the government didn't do much to help them...same deal with opportunity to get rich here.
 
Quote from SiSePuede!:

Are you mentally damaged?

Saying everyone has the opportunity to get rich in America is like saying everyone had a chance to get out of New Orleans before the flood....sure there were some who could have an didn't, but others truly had no means of getting out and the government didn't do much to help them...same deal with opportunity to get rich here.

You're just making excuses for those who aren't smart, diligent, or solution-oriented enough to take the course of action with a higher probability of survival. Hell they all could've taken the freaking public transits or simply run out of there before the storm hit. But no, most of them decided to sit on their lazy butts and "wait it out"
 
Quote from VanessaChu:

"The rich get richer and the poor get poorer" is a common saying that most of us hear all the time, and this unequal distribution of income and economic assets is usually a major problem in developing countries. However, this problem is currently seen in many developed countries like America and Australia.

When asked: how can we close this increasing gap between the rich and the poor? Many people would answer education, because education creates human expertise and knowledge creating many job opportunites for the individual seeking for a job.

In my opinion, the irony lies here.

Many developing countries do not offer free education due to government budet constraints and even if they do, children from poor families are forced to work in poor working conditions with very little pay to help feed their families, hence unable to receive this 'free' education and those children, their family and the childrens children would be forever stuck in a 'catch-22' or a vicious spiral where the poor CAN ONLY GET POORER. The rich, on the other hand, have many resources which they are able to pass on to the next generation giving their children a head start in their cycle of getting richer...

So is there a solution?

*Progressive taxing may help to eliminate the gap slightly, where we tax the rich more heavily and exempt the poor from paying tax

*Minimum wage requirements in every country so foreign firms cannot exploit cheap labour

*Large multinational companies should consider investment projects in developing countries to create jobs and provide training opportunites as a form of corporate social responsibility


Any other opinions, comments and thoughts are welcome!


Vanessa Chu

Why is it that there is considerable mobility between economic classes here in the US and in Asia but little in places with chronic poverty like Mexico or Africa? Could it have more to do with endemic corruption in the poor countries and less to do with the ravages of capitalism?

International aid organizations have studied this issue over and over. They have come up with common characteristics of countries with rapid wealth creation. Hong Kong is the classic example, and it begins with a more or less transparent system of government and rule of law. What is the incnetive to develop a business if El Presidente's family can seize it from you?

It is easy to fall in the trap of being so concerned for the "poor" that you lose sight of wealth creation. If a society is not corrupt and private property is protected, the surest road to empowering the poor is to have an economy that grows wealth. Over time the poor will benefit the most because they start with the least. We need only look to socialist paradises like Cuba to see what happens when you do it the other way.
 
Quote from Rehoboth:

So a girl is at college and has become an avid socialist. Her father is a business owner and a free market capitalist. On her most recent visit home they have this conversation.

Father: So how are your grades?

Girl: Fantastic! I have worked really hard and gotten a 4.0. I am learning so much.

Father: That's great! And how is your roomate doing?

Girl: Well, she is partying a lot, skipping classes and not caring so much about school, she is getting probably a 2.0.

Father: Well you should go to the dean and tell the dean to give some of your GPA to your roomate. So you both are closer in GPA.

Girl: WHAT?!?

Father: Give her some of your gpa, you will still be ok at a 3.5 and she could use a 2.5

Girl: That is not fair. I worked very hard to get a 4.0. She doesnt even go to class, and you think I should just give her some of my grades. There is no way I am doing that.

Father: How does it feel to be a capitalist?

That is just great. I can't wait to use it.
 
Quote from TheDudeofLife:

Restraining money supply growth.

i agree. capitalism should reward actors for making intelligent investment decisions based on the relative merits of assets, not just for having assets at all vs those who do not.

with every asset class in a steep inflation, it's more about what you have already than your ability to discern the quality of any particular asset
 
Quote from Rehoboth:

So a girl is at college and has become an avid socialist. Her father is a business owner and a free market capitalist. On her most recent visit home they have this conversation.

Father: So how are your grades?

Girl: Fantastic! I have worked really hard and gotten a 4.0. I am learning so much.

Father: That's great! And how is your roomate doing?

Girl: Well, she is partying a lot, skipping classes and not caring so much about school, she is getting probably a 2.0.

Father: Well you should go to the dean and tell the dean to give some of your GPA to your roomate. So you both are closer in GPA.

Girl: WHAT?!?

Father: Give her some of your gpa, you will still be ok at a 3.5 and she could use a 2.5

Girl: That is not fair. I worked very hard to get a 4.0. She doesnt even go to class, and you think I should just give her some of my grades. There is no way I am doing that.

Father: How does it feel to be a capitalist?

only morons have to WORK HARD for a 4.0. true genius it comes easy. her roomate passed "above avg" w/o ever having to attend class. who's the true idiot here haha
 
Quote from fearless9:

Passing a law making laziness illegal would be a good start.

I would do it myself, but I feel tired just thinking about it.

No no no!

As always no matter how original the idea to eliminate economic inequality is, it seems to be a tradeoff between economic growth and economic equality.

Laziness is such a powerful drive. Things are invented because we are too lazy to do the work.

To me laziness is far more important than to be just about economic growth, im fighting for my right to be lazy. Death or laziness.
 
Quote from VanessaChu:

"The rich get richer and the poor get poorer" is a common saying that most of us hear all the time, and this unequal distribution of income and economic assets is usually a major problem in developing countries. However, this problem is currently seen in many developed countries like America and Australia.

When asked: how can we close this increasing gap between the rich and the poor? Many people would answer education, because education creates human expertise and knowledge creating many job opportunites for the individual seeking for a job.

In my opinion, the irony lies here.

Many developing countries do not offer free education due to government budet constraints and even if they do, children from poor families are forced to work in poor working conditions with very little pay to help feed their families, hence unable to receive this 'free' education and those children, their family and the childrens children would be forever stuck in a 'catch-22' or a vicious spiral where the poor CAN ONLY GET POORER. The rich, on the other hand, have many resources which they are able to pass on to the next generation giving their children a head start in their cycle of getting richer...

So is there a solution?

*Progressive taxing may help to eliminate the gap slightly, where we tax the rich more heavily and exempt the poor from paying tax

*Minimum wage requirements in every country so foreign firms cannot exploit cheap labour

*Large multinational companies should consider investment projects in developing countries to create jobs and provide training opportunites as a form of corporate social responsibility


Any other opinions, comments and thoughts are welcome!


Vanessa Chu

The title of your thread is "Is there a solution for Economic Inequality?" This question requires the assumption that economic inequality is a problem before it can be addressed. I disagree with your assumption. If you would like to discuss further, then please provide your supporting logic on why economic inequality is a problem. In lieu of that, I will simply say that any logic built upon an unproven assumption leads to an unproven conclusion.

Simply put, the sum total of your arguments are invalid without you first proving your assumption that economic inequality is a problem that must be solved.

-Raystonn
 
Quote from Raystonn:

The title of your thread is "Is there a solution for Economic Inequality?" This question requires the assumption that economic inequality is a problem before it can be addressed. I disagree with your assumption. If you would like to discuss further, then please provide your supporting logic on why economic inequality is a problem. In lieu of that, I will simply say that any logic built upon an unproven assumption leads to an unproven conclusion.

Simply put, the sum total of your arguments are invalid without you first proving your assumption that economic inequality is a problem that must be solved.

-Raystonn

Wow right on the money, kudos Raystonn.
 
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