[spence]

Originally Posted by Jim in CT

But here is what most liberals cannot seem to grasp...one person's wealth does not cause another person's poverty. Wealth is not finite, it's not like a pizza. If Oprah Winfrey earns another million today, that does not mean there's a million less for the rest of us to scrounge for.

Jim, I'm having trouble grasping your logic.

If Oprah makes more money because the government lowers taxes there's less revenue to provide services for the dependent. If corporations keep wages stagnant and funnel value to shareholders there's less wealth to go around for the majority to scrounge for.

This is precisely the macro situation we've been experiencing a to a large degree why wealth continues to consolidate at the very top.

Our country declared 'war on poverty' 50 years ago. Since then, we have spent trillions fighting poverty, and the percentage of people living in poverty hasn't changed much. Why? Because for most poor people, their poverty isn't caused by a lack of money (the lack of money is the outcome, not the cause). Their poverty is caused by their own behavior, abilities, and priorities. You do not solve that by taking from those who have wealth.

Before the Bush 43 years the poverty rate was 1/2 what it was before the 1960's. That's a big drop. Since Reagan the amount government spends on welfare continued to drop as well.

I think if you do some research on public opinion there will be overwhelming support for economic factors over personal ones.

i really don't like the way this argument is framed by the left...namely, that conservatives care less about the poor than liberals. There are studies that show that conservatives donate more time and money to charity than liberals do, and when you consider how each side views religion, that makes intuitive sense.

Republicans do seem to have a credibility gap. Reagan didn't help with this perception...

Finally, when the left talks about how unfair income inequality is, the boogeyman is ALWAYS a corporate CEO. The left never seems to care about actors or singers who are jillionaires. That tells me that wealth is OK, as long as it comes from a source that is left-leaning?

Big difference. Celebrities are a source of individual wealth, the CEO is usually on top of an organization. Celebrities have always done pretty well, where the CEO to individual contributor pay gap has grown dramatically over the last 30 years.

-spence