Why is inequality bad

But there will always be some reason of this kind as long as redistributing assets increases the well-being of the poor more than it decreases that of the rich.

Many people in the United States seem to believe that our high and rising level of inequality is objectionable in itself, and it is worth inquiring into why this might be so. This inquiry is important for two reasons. The first is because a justification for redistribution needs to include some response to the claims of the rich that they are entitled to keep what they have earned. What Peter Singer argues for powerfully is voluntary redistribution.

A justification for reducing inequality through non-voluntary means, such as taxation, needs to explain why redistribution of this kind is not just robbery, like the activities of Willie Sutton and Robin Hood. Second, if inequality, in itself, is something to be concerned about, we need to explain why this is so. It is easy to understand why people want to be better off than they are, especially if their current condition is very bad. But why, apart from this, should anyone be concerned with the difference between what they have and what others have?

I will mention four reasons for objecting to inequality, and consider the responses they provide to the charge of mere envy and to the claims of entitlement. The first three:. Economic inequality can give wealthier people an unacceptable degree of control over the lives of others. You could offer piano lessons. And then what about the first? Again, this kind of depends.

Some billionaires have set up charitable foundations that give out grants. Other billionaires fund venture capital firms that bet on startup pitches. A few of them are willing to support activists with a particular political aim.

Rising inequality makes it more and more likely that the easiest way to start a business, sustain a business, or make a living is to pander to the whims of the very richest individuals among us. This twists the engine of innovation away from efficient!

The fundamental idea here is that what we pay for tells the economy what we want more of. Existing companies jockey with entrepreneurs, testing out different ways to make money selling us what they think we want. They create new products or services to offer along with variations on already successful ones. Whatever makes money gets amplified, whether that is a clever design, an efficient supply chain, or a successful marketing strategy.

This logic has an emergent, evolutionary ring to it. In Europe at least, rising prosperity seems to have led to better societies with less social ills, but for the non-European countries is remains unclear why levels of social ills changed. Still, our results prompt scholars as well as the public to re-think the widespread negative image of contemporary society. In many countries, there is small progress towards a better society with less social ills" explains Leonie Steckermeier, co-author of the study.

The empirical analysis was based on a set of six social ills, namely low life expectancy, infant mortality, and obesity as health issues, and intentional homicides, teenage pregnancy, and imprisonment rate as social problems. The data were compiled from international sources such as the Worldbank and the World Health Organization for the years from to We live in the same neighbourhood, area, country, and planet with about seven billion other people, and our economies inevitably overlap all the time.

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