why I'm bitter

[BklynChick]

Income Inequality Grew In Most States Over Past Two Decades, Experts Say

The gap between the richest and poorest families grew significantly in most states over the past two decades with poor families losing the most ground, says a new study by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) and the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

In fact, the nation's longstanding trend of growing inequality accelerated since the late 1990s as incomes fell for poor families and stagnated for middle-income families in a number of states.

The study, based on inflation-adjusted Census data, is one of the few to examine income inequality at the state level. It measured and compared income trends among the highest-, middle-, and lowest-income families in three periods – the late 1980s, the late 1990s, and the mid-2000s. If anything, the study understates inequality because it does not include income from capital gains, which goes overwhelmingly to those at the top, experts note.

Low- and middle-income families have reaped few gains since the late 1990s, despite the recent years of economic prosperity. Average incomes actually fell by 2.5% for those in the bottom fifth of the income scale and rose by just 1.3% for those in the middle fifth. Meanwhile, incomes climbed 9% for those in the top fifth.

"Before the recent downturn hit, our economy was generating solid income gains. The problem was that high levels of inequality meant these gains failed to reach middle- and low-income families, whose living standards stagnated or even declined," Jared Bernstein, senior EPI economist, told CYF. "As we head into an economic downturn, these families are ill-prepared to weather the storm."

The states facing the largest income gaps between the top and bottom fifths of families are New York, Alabama, Mississippi, Massachusetts, Tennessee, New Mexico, Connecticut, California, Texas and Kentucky. Nationally the average income of the top fifth of families is more than seven times larger than the average income of the bottom fifth of families.

Info: www.cbpp.org/4-9-08sfp-pr.htm

[mrcheerful]

1. Bitter? You want bitter? I'll give you bitter. I remember a time in this country when the

worth of a person was based on what he did do instead of what he couldn't do. I remember a time when disabled meant that a persons health was severly at risk if he worked instead of being the new welfare queen. I remember a time when people mattered not money and things, sure we all had that one neighbor who thought he was better then the rest because of the things he could buy, but we also knew that his daughter was the one who rigged the summer night strip poker game so she was the first one to lose all her clothes. I remember a time when a person who couldn't work or find a job was seen as more of an example of there go I but for the grace of name your higher power. I remember a time not so long ago that out of my SSDI check I still had enough left in my pocket to buy a cup of joe at the end of the month unlike today where I just spent my last $5 for gas so the SO could go to the doctors office. I remember a time when you could get medicine and not have to take out a second mortage on your home. Yeah bitter lets talk about it.