Rich and Poor in America — Or How Rich the Poor Really Are

SEE HERE The reality of poverty in the United States is interesting because our poor are the richest poor in the world with more than the rest of the world has. Bill Whittle critiques the poverty in America narrative. When he talks about the parable of the check (that's not what he calls it but when you watch you'll know what I mean) I was reminded of the parable of the workers that agreed to work all day for a denarius and later some that worked only an hour also received a denarius.

People appear to resent generosity that is proportional and generosity that is disproportional. The people who did more think that they should receive more and the people who see others get something they didn't really deserve think they deserve the same thing. Both of those are a symptom of envy. You only have the right to what you deserve and if someone is generous however great or small you should be pleased. The reality of poverty in the United States is that what most of us call poverty isn't poverty at all. It is differential luxury.

I thought the timelines were particularly telling because they showed that on average if you wait in the United States when the economy is growing then in ten years you'll have what only the rich had ten years earlier. It's really a little hard to feel too sorry for the poor in America when you compare their "poverty" to the real poverty in the world.