The Poor Getting Poorer, The Rich Getting Richer?

[rocker935]

Alright you guys, i got a cappi history teacher that tried to tell us that the phrase "The rich are getting richer, The poor are getting poorer" has never actually been true. He said that overall, that has never happened. He said that when the rich get richer by a lot the poor get a little bit more wealthier. and he said that when the rich lose money so will the poor. Well obviously this isn't true, i was able to get him on the great depression. But where else in history have the "Rich gotten richer & the poor gotten poorer"

EDIT: I forgot to mention that the only thing that he would admit was that the gap gets bigger. He said that the lowest class is richer now in America than they were 50 years ago. He said that the value of their dollar is higher now.

[syndicat]

since 1972 the real workers weekly earnings have dropped by about 20% and the hourly rate by over 13%. also, the percentage of people in poverty has increased. the ratio of CEO pay to worker pay has grown enormously. a far higher proportion of wealth is concentrated at the top. if workers are forced to work longer hours, are less likely to have adequate health insurance coverage, are less likely to have an adequate pension, and their wage rate is lower, why are they not poorer? it's true that average family income hasn't declined, but this is due to having more family members working. and that's only the average. the distribution of income is far more unequal, which is why a higher percentage are in poverty.

[Demogorgon]

This was a popular view back in the eighties during the height of Reagan and Thatcher. From the end of the war to the mid seventies or thereabouts average wealth for everyone did increase and the wealth gap did get a bit smaller. Some took this as proof that capitalism actually worked and that the previous disparities in wealth had simply been caused by rapid growth were coming to an end. They concluded that capitalism would in fact produce a fairly equal society and let it run rampant.

Ofcourse we now know better than that. Just today for example there were new figures released showing that for most people in Britain, average income and of course wealth, has fallen slightly, whereas the rich of course have gotten much richer. This is true pretty much across the entire western world.

Saying that this is not the case is simply false and completely ignorant of the facts. If you want to present him with a definite time epriod that proves you right. Show him right now. Most people are objectively becoming poorer, even though the economy is obviously growing.

[Schrödinger's Cat]

. He said that overall, that has never happened. He said that when the rich get richer by a lot the poor get a little bit more wealthier. and he said that when the rich lose money so will the poor. Well obviously this isn't true, i was able to get him on the great depression. But where else in history have the "Rich gotten richer & the poor gotten poorer"


The wealth gap is continually growing, with some fluctuations and kickbacks.

I assume your teacher is talking about real poverty. He's wrong to say that never happens. Real income has declined in the past 20-30 years. Executives are making a lot more than they were before the conservatives came in and responded to the struggling welfare state problems with privatization.

[Red Scare]

Originally posted by [email protected] 11, 2007 08:15 pm
Alright you guys, i got a cappi history teacher that tried to tell us that the phrase "The rich are getting richer, The poor are getting poorer" has never actually been true. He said that overall, that has never happened. He said that when the rich get richer by a lot the poor get a little bit more wealthier. and he said that when the rich lose money so will the poor. Well obviously this isn't true, i was able to get him on the great depression. But where else in history have the "Rich gotten richer & the poor gotten poorer"

EDIT: I forgot to mention that the only thing that he would admit was that the gap gets bigger. He said that the lowest class is richer now in America than they were 50 years ago. He said that the value of their dollar is higher now.
Where the hell have you been Rocker935? :D. We miss you at Young Comrades! Well, all history teachers in America are like that...

[Lenin II]

Originally posted by Red Scare+November 12, 2007 03:39 am--> (Red Scare @ November 12, 2007 03:39 am)
[email protected] 11, 2007 08:15 pm
Alright you guys, i got a cappi history teacher that tried to tell us that the phrase "The rich are getting richer, The poor are getting poorer" has never actually been true. He said that overall, that has never happened. He said that when the rich get richer by a lot the poor get a little bit more wealthier. and he said that when the rich lose money so will the poor. Well obviously this isn't true, i was able to get him on the great depression. But where else in history have the "Rich gotten richer & the poor gotten poorer"

EDIT: I forgot to mention that the only thing that he would admit was that the gap gets bigger. He said that the lowest class is richer now in America than they were 50 years ago. He said that the value of their dollar is higher now.
Where the hell have you been Rocker935? :D. We miss you at Young Comrades! Well, all history teachers in America are like that... [/b]
Tell me about it. My political science teacher says stuff like, "Well, we're not rich because they're poor...our workers are just more productive."

So the implication is that poor people are just lazy? If that's true, there are sure a lot of lazy bastards in the world. :D

[Redmau5]

It's also important to think about inflation. While the dollar may be worth more than it was fifty years agao, general consumer goods are also much costlier than they were fifty years ago. Wage increases in the public sector are usually timed with increases in inflation, often at times when the rate of inflation is greater than the wage increase. It is in effect, a pay cut.

[rocker935]

Originally posted by Red Scare+November 12, 2007 03:39 am--> (Red Scare @ November 12, 2007 03:39 am)
[email protected] 11, 2007 08:15 pm
Alright you guys, i got a cappi history teacher that tried to tell us that the phrase "The rich are getting richer, The poor are getting poorer" has never actually been true. He said that overall, that has never happened. He said that when the rich get richer by a lot the poor get a little bit more wealthier. and he said that when the rich lose money so will the poor. Well obviously this isn't true, i was able to get him on the great depression. But where else in history have the "Rich gotten richer & the poor gotten poorer"

EDIT: I forgot to mention that the only thing that he would admit was that the gap gets bigger. He said that the lowest class is richer now in America than they were 50 years ago. He said that the value of their dollar is higher now.
Where the hell have you been Rocker935? :D. We miss you at Young Comrades! Well, all history teachers in America are like that... [/b]
I know dude im sorry, i been buisy as hell.

And to the rest of you guys, thx for the replies. On a completely random note, how do you handle these ignorant and republican teachers? do you argue/debate them in front of the whole class? I try to do that so that I can get a large group of kids on my side but it just seems that you can't win with these teachers. They make up statistics and generalizations. They are like fukin American Politicians, if you make a good point they just dodge it. its fucking ridiculous. Should I just go ahead and make a separate thread for this? Or has this already been discussed.

[Spasiba]

Maybe the standart of living got better as a whole, at least in the U.S.? Even so, the rich will always have 'power' as far as money can buy. But we workers have numbers on our side, if only we could all unite.

[Ol' Dirty]

Tell him that his comment is economicaly unsound: when capital concentrates into the hands of some, there is less capital available for others. If he's taken a basic economics class, he's learned that.

[La Comédie Noire]

Your teacher is right and wrong. The more there is on the table, the bigger the crumbs. However, poor nations third world nations do not get to enjoy these crumbs.

Your teacher isn't thinking globally, he's thinking nation by nation. Tell him to look at the whole world, whsoe rich and whose poor, and why it is that way.

[RNK]

Actually, the teacher is just wrong. Recent studies (recent as in done earlier this year) on the subject have shown:

1) The gap between rich and poor is widening (this has been true forever and I don't see how any sane person can even attempt to discount this very proven fact)
2) In the past 30 years, the lowest income strata has seen not only a gradual reduction in their income, but also an increase in their working hours from 30 years ago;
3) In the same 30 years, the highest income strata has not only seen a gradual increase in their income, but also a decrease in their working hours.
4) The only strata which has seen stability is the middle class (and despite what Lou Dobbs has to say, the middle class is the minority). Their wealth has neither increased or decreased dramatically.

So essentially: The poor are getting poorer and working more; the rich are getting richer and working less.