The U.S. economy is failing to recover and Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz thinks he knows the reason. In a recent New York Times piece, Stiglitz faulted growing inequality in both opportunity and economic outcomes. One wonders what facts or statistical evidence bring him to this conclusion. Inequalities in opportunity are as narrow as they have ever been in U.S. history. And even in the past, such inequalities never held back U.S. economic recoveries, so why should they do so now?
So perhaps the problem is growing income inequality. Even here, there is ample room for doubt. Income inequality is increasing in the United States according to certain measures, but the picture becomes far murkier when taxes, benefits and entitlements are included. Moreover, it is difficult to find a plausible chain of causation between the phenomenon of inequality and the current economic stagnation.
On the other hand, it is easy to see how a national debt, which comes to $145,000 for each taxpayer, might play a role, as politicians rush to raise the debt ceiling over and over again. Americans and American businesses remain uncertain about future regulation and taxation—especially about the Affordable Care Act—and remain on the sidelines out of fear for the future rather than investing and expanding. Entitlements remain on autopilot, and the Affordable Health Care Act will exacerbate this problem as well….To Read More……
No comments:
Post a Comment