If the economy has gotten better for anyone, it has been the wealthiest among us. You may feel it when The statistics back up the feeling that many people have as they see gas rising to $4 dollars and the wealthy show off their toys on America's magazines and whatnot. Tax reports show that the top 1 percent of earners in the city now make more than a third of all income.
From The NY Times Cityroom:
An analysis provided by the Fiscal Policy Institute [pdf] on New York showed that the average income of the top fifth of New York families is 8.7 times as great as that of the bottom fifth. That means for every dollar earned by the top fifth, only 11.5 cents is earned by the bottom fifth. This is the biggest gap in all the states, and like those in the rest of the country, it has been growing for the last 20 years. (Though the disparity is growing fastest in Connecticut, as an article noted today.)
Of course, the income disparity is even more pronounced in Manhattan, which as Sam Roberts has previously noted, was comparable as of 2000 to that of Namibia, in that the poorest fifth of families made only 2 cents for every dollar made by the richest fifth of families.
The top 1 percent of New York City tax filers, 32,000 tax returns representing 82,000 New York City residents, received 37 percent of the city’s adjusted gross income — which includes wages, business income and capital gains, among other earnings. They earned 20 percent of wages, 59 percent of dividends and interest, 70 percent of business income and 86 percent of capital gains.
Yeah, whenever someone tells you that people own a corporation, it really is only a wealthy few that truly hold power in the board room. It is a fact that wealth is being concentrated into the hands of a few and directed there by policies crafted by those few.
Being compared to Namibia should not be taken as a compliment by anyone. The income gap is a real problem for New York and the entire country. While a few enjoy the riches, the fact is that while most people's boats continue to sink, eventually the rich will suffer. Call it economics, call it karma, call it whatever you want. What we can't avoid is that if we do not change this corporate, feed the rich culture, we are all in trouble.
Oh and if New Yorkers want any kind of bright side to this, at least we aren't as bad as Connecticut.
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