Fairer Societies Simply Work Better

[Hissyspit]

http://www.alternet.org/workplace/141645/nobody%27s_talking_about_the_silver_bullet_that_could_heal_the_economy_and_cure_most_social_ills_/?page=entire

Nobody's Talking About the Silver Bullet That Could Heal the Economy and Cure Most Social Ills

By Jeff Ritterman, M.D., AlterNet. Posted July 31, 2009.

Fairer societies simply work better.

Imagine a guidebook on formulating social policy, with instructions on how to extend life expectancy, decrease infant mortality, improve child well-being, reduce obesity, lower homicide rates, decrease school dropout rates, lower teen pregnancy, increase levels of civic trust, improve voter turnout, decrease drug abuse, lower incarceration rates, decrease rates of mental illness, and improve social mobility based on merit.

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The core message is that the countries that distribute their incomes the most equally have the longest life expectancy and the highest quality of life. The same is true for states within the U.S.; the more income equality, the longer the life span. Unfortunately, the United States is now the most unequal of the wealthy countries, with the exception of Singapore.



As income inequality increases, we trust one another less. For those concerned that I am confusing correlation with causality, I refer you to the thoughtful discussion of this in The Spirit Level. The authors review the extensive data on civic trust and make a convincing argument that causality is the best fit.

Increasing income inequality puts us on a pathway toward a less trusting, more individualistic and less community-minded society. As community cohesion erodes, we all suffer.

The graphic below shows just how much the U.S. is lagging behind other wealthy countries due to our highly unequal income distribution.



We in the U.S. are becoming more and more unequal. Our poor showing in life expectancy and quality of life is a direct result. It wasn’t always this way, and it does not need to remain so. Income distribution has varied widely.

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[Hannah Bell]

1. kr

[opihimoimoi]

2. k n r :o)

[OneBlueSky]

3. geez . . . don't confuse me like that . . . at first glance, I read your heading as . . .

"Fairy Societies Simply Work Better" . . .

now, being gay I'd certainly welcome some research to support that claim . . . but on second look I realized that my error was probably just the result of some misplaced wishful thinking . . .

still, if you ever hear of a fairy society that works, do drop me a line . . . I'm tired of the one we're in, and open to almost anything new and exciting . . . or even new and dull, for that matter . . .

cheers . . . :)

[Hissyspit]

4. Kick nt

[TexasObserver]

5. Recommend

[Odin2005]

6. That last chart is interesting, WW2 caused the "Great Compression"

And look what happened when St. Ronnie came.

[The2ndWheel]

7. What's the price of energy in all these countries?

That could have something to do with it. How they tax it, if they tax it, how much they tax it, etc. Also the particular history of each country plays a part. The number of people currently in these countries. The physical size of these countries. How and where the people live inside the countries. The resources these countries have, or don't have. The immigration policies of each country. Where the country fits in the global society. The actions and policies of every other country in relation to the actions and policies of any particular country.

[Hissyspit]

8. .