Recent discussions of economic inequality,
marked by a lack of clarity and care, have confused
the public about the meaning and moral
significance of rising income inequality. Income
statistics paint a misleading picture of real standards
of living and real economic inequality.
Several strands of evidence about real standards
of living suggest a very different picture of the
trends in economic inequality. In any case, the
dispersion of incomes at any given time has, at
best, a tenuous connection to human welfare or
social justice. The pattern of incomes is affected
by both morally desirable and undesirable mechanisms.
When injustice or wrongdoing increases
income inequality, the problem is the original
malign cause, not the resulting inequality. Many
thinkers mistake national populations for “society”
and thereby obscure the real story about the
effects of trade and immigration on welfare,
equality, and justice. There is little evidence that
high levels of income inequality lead down a slippery
slope to the destruction of democracy and
rule by the rich. The unequal political voice of the
poor can be addressed only through policies that
actually work to fight poverty and improve education.
Income inequality is a dangerous distraction
from the real problems: poverty, lack of economic
opportunity, and systemic injustice.Recent discussions of economic inequality,
marked by a lack of clarity and care, have confused
the public about the meaning and moral
significance of rising income inequality. Income
statistics paint a misleading picture of real standards
of living and real economic inequality.
Several strands of evidence about real standards
of living suggest a very different picture of the
trends in economic inequality. In any case, the
dispersion of incomes at any given time has, at
best, a tenuous connection to human welfare or
social justice. The pattern of incomes is affected
by both morally desirable and undesirable mechanisms.
When injustice or wrongdoing increases
income inequality, the problem is the original
malign cause, not the resulting inequality. Many
thinkers mistake national populations for “society”
and thereby obscure the real story about the
effects of trade and immigration on welfare,
equality, and justice. There is little evidence that
high levels of income inequality lead down a slippery
slope to the destruction of democracy and
rule by the rich. The unequal political voice of the
poor can be addressed only through policies that
actually work to fight poverty and improve education.
Income inequality is a dangerous distraction
from the real problems: poverty, lack of economic
opportunity, and systemic injustice.
Will Wilkinson is a research fellow at the Cato Institute and editor of Cato Unbound.