Make elites compete: Why the 1% earn so much and what to do about it

Re:Make elites compete: Why the 1% earn so much and what to ... by sangnoir on Saturday March 26, 2016 @05:07AM (#11364978)

> If you mean in term of quality of life, I actually think that in absolute terms it is probably marginal

You are severely underestimating the importance of peace of mind. When you are poor, you are always worried about making rent. When you are middle class, you might be a few paychecks (or a hospital bill) away from insolvency. The wealthy don't have to worry about those things.

John Scalzi has an awesome post about the cost of being poor[1] on his blog.

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2005/09/03/being-poor/

Edit: d'oh, my reply is off-topic because I misread GP's post - missed that the distinction is between 1%ers and 0.1%ers. Considering that; I suspect the difference is in influence (my guess is the 0.1% are likely to be more 'politically involved' or better connected)

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Re:Make elites compete: Why the 1% earn so much and what to ... by cm2187 on Saturday March 26, 2016 @05:16AM (#11364998)

I don't think there is a single item on the list of this blog that applies to the american middle class or even lower end of middle class. Poverty is a different issue but what this article is referring to is the gap between the "1%" and the rest of the population, and I think a typical middle class american is the right comparison to assess whether this is such a gap in quality of life.

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Re:Make elites compete: Why the 1% earn so much and what to ... by massysett on Saturday March 26, 2016 @07:50AM (#11365315)

I think @sangnoir was too quick to retract the point. A typical middle class American is one job loss or disability away from despair. Funding a child's postsecondary education is also expensive. The middle class are certainly better off than the poor but the 1 percent have much additional peace of mind.

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