Tentative thesis
\nWealth inequality effects our economy, our people, and our justice system causing so many different problems each year which is why it is the biggest problem of the 21st century.
\n\u2022 Scope and Value- I want to examine the effects the wealth inequality has not only on our economy but how this affects other demographic scenarios. Wealth inequality is a huge problem in today\u2019s society and has been for a very long time. The unequal distribution of our money has caused not only problems relating to the poverty rate but I believe that much more damage has come from this issue. One of the reasons I believe that the wealth inequality is becoming larger and larger every day is due to the fact that people do not know enough about the subject. People seem to be very uneducated on this subject because it is not stressed enough in the society we live in. In an article I found about wealth inequality, Zaid Jilani does a great job interpreting what people know about this problem. \u201cPeople\u2019s idea of what they believe is the wealth difference is extremely different then what the difference actually is. In a study conducted over several months, most people believed the top twenty percent of Americans own about sixty percent of the wealth, while the middle forty percent owns about thirty percent, and then the last forty owns about ten percent of the wealth. But the actual wealth distribution is even worse than this. The top twenty percent owns about eighty percent, while the middle forty owns about eighteen percent, and the last forty owns about two percent.\u201d2 People know that there clearly is a gap between the rich and the poor but do they know how big this gap is and why this gap is so big. This is a problem because the overall effect it has on our society. A society where, as studies show, people resort to crime only if the potential benefits of the crime outweigh the cost or consequences of committing that crime.1 Although the issue of wealth inequality has stretched all over the globe, I want to examine, more specifically, the result this has had on different neighborhoods throughout the United States of America. I believe that the United States has been greatly affected by this problem and something needs to be done about it. America is home to some of the richest people and some of the poorest and I think this will show the different results that the wealth inequality can cause. I believe focusing on some of the major cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, or New York, could prove to be beneficial.
\nI researched the results that show that wealth inequality in the United States has become a serious issue and many questions arose. One question that I have is how these results directly relate to how people living in poverty are effected? I believe the issue of wealth inequality directly relates to certain issues involving the overall crime rate. This is extremely concerning to most because we are causing unwanted problems in our society because of how big the wealth inequality has become. But why should people want to change the society that has proved to be somewhat successful so far as in developing our country? We have created a strong system that seems to be okay with some in the sense that if you work hard you will succeed so why change? What went wrong with the idea of the American dream? I believe that this idea of the \u201cAmerican dream\u201d has actually changed to the \u201cAmerican myth.\u201d In a society where the wealth distribution is so large, it is nearly impossible for all Americans to chase this dream. What would a society be like with an \u201cideal\u201d system that creates, not an even, but a mild to moderate slope on the wealth inequality scale?
\n\u2022 Originality- The issue involving wealth inequality has been studied since the days of Karl Marx and even before but from the sources that I have previously looked they all seem to focus on how the economy is affected. Whether that is talking about how many people live in poverty, or how this has affected the economy, or just the overall statistics of wealth inequality.. The articles would go on to talk about the everyday life of the people who were affected negatively or positively from our system. In my paper I want to focus more on the people who are affected negatively, their thoughts about the system, their lives, and also how this has affected the neighborhoods that they are forced to live in because of their income. I want to research, in depth, the different lives that these people in poverty live in comparison to the wealthy. How one group is able to live the way they want to live and achieve the \u201cAmerican Dream\u201d while as for some they are stuck in a never ending battle with poverty.
\n\u2022 Practicality- After doing an extensive amount of research on this topic already, I believe that there will be enough information on my subject. There are many different books, databases, and articles that relate to my topic which I will be able to use. I am also in the process of looking for more primary resources just to help further back up my argument.. To articulate my point correctly I think that I will first have to lay down the facts on what wealth inequality was and what it has come to. Then, using some of my secondary resources, I will talk about the different parties that are effected the most by this problem. I will go on to talk about the different problems, such as crime, drugs, lack of education, and more, that arise from these people who are effected using different types of primary and secondary sources. Then I will need to create reasoning behind my belief on why I think these topics are directly related.<\/p>\n
Bibliography:
\nBriggs, Jr. Vernon M \u201cAmerican-Style Capitalism and Income Disparity: The Challenge of
\nSocial Anarchy.” Journal Of Economic Issues 32, no. 2 (1998): 473-480<\/p>\n
Hoover, Gary A., Ryan A. Compton, and Daniel C. Giedeman. “The Impact of Economic
\nFreedom on the Black\/White Income Gap.” American Economic Review 105, no. 5
\n(2015): 587-592.
\nGrusky, David B. “class.” The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics. Second Edition. Eds. Steven N. Durlauf and Lawrence E. Blume. Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics Online. Palgrave Macmillan. 13 October 201
\nJilani, Zaid. “How Unequal We Are: The Top 5 Facts You Should Know About The Wealthiest One Percent Of Americans.” ThinkProgress How Unequal We Are The Top 5 Facts You Should Know About The Wealthiest One Percent Of Americans Comments. October 3, 2011. Accessed October 12, 2015.
\nKeister, Lisa A. and Stephanie Moller \u201cWealth Inequality in the United States\u201d Annual Review of Sociology Vol. 26 (2000), pp. 63-81. Accessed October 9, 2015<\/p>\n
McLaughlin, Lacey. “The Poverty-Crime Connection.” The Poverty-Crime Connection. October
\n19, 2011. Accessed October 6, 2015<\/p>\n
Milanovic\u0301, Branko. The Haves and the Have-nots: A Brief and Idiosyncratic History of Global
\nInequality. New York: Basic Books, 2011.<\/p>\n
Quadrini, Vincenzo. “growth and inequality (macro perspectives).” The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics. Second Edition. Eds. Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics Online. Palgrave Macmillan. 13 October 2015<\/p>\n
Taibbi, Matt. The Divide: American Injustice in the Age of the Wealth Gap. New York: Spiegal
\nand Grau, New 2014<\/p>\n
Yamamoto, Daisaku. “Scales of Regional Income Disparities in the USA, 1955-2003.” Journal
\nof Economic Geography 8, no. 1 (2008): 79-103.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Tentative thesis Wealth inequality effects our economy, our people, and our justice system causing so many different problems each year which is why it is the biggest problem of the 21st century. \u2022 Scope and Value- I want to examine … Continue reading