A Look at the Numbers: How the Rich Get Richer
How the rich get richer.
IN 1985, THE FORBES 400 were worth $221 billion combined. Today, they’re worth $1.13 trillion—more than the GDP of Canada.
THERE’VE BEEN FEW new additions to the Forbes 400. The median household income has also stagnated—at around $44,000.
AMONG THE FORBES 400 who gave to a 2004 presidential campaign, 72% gave to Bush.
IN 2005, there were 9 million American millionaires, a 62% increase since 2002.
IN 2005, 25.7 million Americans received food stamps, a 49% increase since 2000.
ONLY ESTATES worth more than $1.5 million are taxed. That’s less than 1% of all estates. Still, repealing the estate tax will cost the government at least $55 billion a year.
ONLY 3% OF STUDENTS at the top 146 colleges come from families in the bottom income quartile; only 10% come from the bottom half.
BUSH’S TAX CUTS GIVE a 2-child family earning $1 million an extra $86,722—or Harvard tuition, room, board, and an iMac G5 for both kids.
A 2-CHILD family earning $50,000 gets $2,050—or 1/5 the cost of public college for one kid.
THIS YEAR, Donald Trump will earn $1.5 million an hour to speak at Learning Annex seminars.
ADJUSTED FOR INFLATION, the federal minimum wage has fallen 42% since its peak in 1968.
IF THE $5.15 HOURLY minimum wage had risen at the same rate as CEO compensation since 1990, it would now stand at $23.03.
A MINIMUM WAGE employee who works 40 hours a week for 51 weeks a year goes home with $10,506 before taxes.
SUCH A WORKER would take 7,000 years to earn Oracle CEO Larry Ellison’s yearly compensation.
ELLISON RECENTLY posed in Vanity Fair with his $300 million, 454-foot yacht, which he noted is “really only the size of a very large house.”
ONLY THE WEALTHIEST 20% of Americans spend more on entertainment than on health care.
THE $17,530 EARNED by the average Wal-Mart employee last year was $1,820 below the poverty line for a family of 4.
5 OF AMERICA’S 10 richest people are Wal-Mart heirs.
PUBLIC COMPANIES spend 10% of their earnings compensating their top 5 executives.
1,730 BOARD MEMBERS of the nation’s 1,000 leading companies sit on the boards of 4 or more other corporations—including half of Coca-Cola’s 14-person board.
THE BIDDER who won a round of golf with Tiger Woods for $30,100 at a 2004 Buick charity auction could deduct all but about $200.
TIGER MADE $87 million in 2005, all but $12 million from endorsements and appearance fees.
THE 5TH LEADING philanthropist last year was Boone Pickens, in part due to his $165 million gift to Oklahoma State University’s golf program.
WITHIN AN HOUR, OSU invested it in a hedge fund Pickens controls. Thanks to a Katrina relief provision, his “gift” was also 100% deductible.
LAST YEAR 250 COMPANIES gave top execs between $50,000 and $1 million worth of wholly personal flights on corporate jets.
THIS PERK is 66% more costly to companies whose CEO belongs to out-of-state golf clubs.
THE U.S. GOVERNMENT spends $500,000 on 8 security screeners who speed execs from a Wall Street helipad to American’s JFK terminal.
UNITED HAS CUT the pensions and salaries of most employees but promised 400 top executives 8% of the shares it expects to issue upon emerging from bankruptcy.
UNITED’S TOP 8 execs will also get a bonus of between 55% and 100% of their salaries.
IN 2002, “turnaround artist” Robert Miller dumped Bethlehem Steel’s pension obligation, allowing “vulture investor” Wilbur L. Ross to buy steel stock and sell it at a 1,000% profit.
IN 2005, DELPHI HIRED Miller for $4.5 million. After Ross said he might buy Delphi if its labor costs fell, Miller demanded wage cuts of up to 63% and dumped the pension obligation.
10 FORMER ENRON directors agreed to pay shareholders a $13 million settlement—which is 10% of what they made by dumping stock while lying about the company’s health.
POOR AMERICANS spend 1/4 of their income on residential energy costs.
EXXON’S 2005 PROFIT of $36.13 billion is more than the GDP of 2/3 of the world’s nations.
CEO PAY AMONG military contractors has tripled since 2001. For David Brooks, the CEO of bulletproof vest maker DHB, it’s risen 13,233%.
AT THE $10 MILLION bat mitzvah party Brooks threw his daughter last year, guests got $1,000 gift bags and listened to Aerosmith, Kenny G., Tom Petty, Stevie Nicks, and 50 Cent—who reportedly sang, “Go shorty, it’s your bat mitzvah, we gonna party like it’s your bat mitzvah.”
FOR PERFORMING IN the Live 8 concerts to “make poverty history,” musicians each got gift bags worth up to $12,000.
OSCAR PERFORMERS and presenters collectively owe the IRS $1,250,000 on the gift bags they got at the 2006 Academy Awards ceremony.
A DOG FOOD COMPANY provided “pawdicures” and other spa treatments to pets of celebrities attending the 2006 Sundance Film Festival.
ONE OF MADONNA’S recent freebies: $10,000 mink and diamond-tipped false eyelashes.
PARIS HILTON, who charges clubs $200,000 to appear for 20 minutes, stiffed Elton John’s AIDS benefit the $2,500-per-plate fee she owed.
ACCORDING TO Radar magazine, Owen Wilson was paid $100,000 to attend a Mercedes-Benz-sponsored Hamptons polo match. When other guests tried to speak with him, he reportedly said, “That’s not my job.”
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We are living in the 21st Century of the Roman Empire Days. It too shall fall, and not in the too distant future.
i am tremendously impressed with your portrayl of such indepth knowledge of the subject i thank you from the bottom of my heart and i pray that you continue to enlighten us in future
I think the poor are being screwed over by the rich. We spend billions on weapons we do not need, yet we have homeless people, many of whom are teens. This is a crime.
We do need the weapons of
We do need the weapons of the military. You can't lay the blame of homelessness on anyone but people themselves. This whole idea of the rich pushing the poor into poverty is nonsense. You get where you work to be. If you don't have skills or do a decent job, you get nowhere.
Misanthropy & Ignorance -
The idea of you having a clue in this matter is completely nonsense.
The poor are not a good lier and not greedy. Which made them contented just to go on living a normal life.
It makes not much differents from the very rich to the average poor. As for the rich they can fly from places to places but involve of risk in danger. For the poor they stay put on one place where they can enjoy precious time with their love one.
The rich can have the most expensive food in the world but is never enough to made you full.
The poor can have maggie mee which taste nice one is not enough.
So, everyone out their super rich and average poor life goes no matter what happen only matter is please contribute to the needies if u got extra. Is a sad world if u hold on to yourself by not sharing.
It will be wonderful world if the sky the sea and the jungle forever remain mistery not to be explore.
oohay2237...
It is not that the poor aren't liars or greedy...its simply the fact that they are not as privileged.
usa useing the poor to fight their wars wedont have no rights in america croupt cops croupt judges croupt chruchs Americais a war maker prison builter capalist pigs . smoth talkers
Once the middle class disappears, the civil war will commence.
I only hope I am alive to see it.
I think Frank Grimes is right. When the middle class disappears, a war will ensue.
Open your eyes, look at your surroundings ... haha ... welcome to hell!
this is sad. we need to stop this. they need to get a life. and we need to get some money. i cry at night, because my mom doesnt have enough money to spend on food, clothes, and to pay the bills every month. it makes me cringe. i think to myself, DOES THIS MONEY MAKE YOU HAPPY NOW??...i didnt think so.
I see them cry.
I see them get hurt, threatened and Sued.
I know they feel helpless and alone.
And I know they want to hide.
They cant walk around, normal, in Public.
And they fight the press and paparazzi.
They cant stay in love half the time.
And they have to own houses they barely Get to see because of work.
Their friends love them...
But for the money.
And I must ask them...
ARE YOU
HAPPY NOW?
I didnt think so.
And now sitting by yourself in that Endless house, do you see what I see?
A snob, ungenerous, indifferent Celebrity?
I hate it.
I cry at night, because I know my mom Can't pay the bills every now and then.
And I know she doesn't deserve this Hard life.
And neither do have the other people in This world.
And it sucks big time.
Without the rich providing jobs, what would poor and middle class people do for money.
Our standard of living is a lot higher than the rest of the world.
People with money donate to the poor.
The top 10% of wage earners pay 80% of the taxes in the US. That tax money goes to provide public services to the poor.
Damn all those rich people paying all the taxes to support all the government programs.
I grew up in a family of 11. My mom was in an abusive relationship with a man who converted our foodstamps into money so he could gamble in Atlantic City. None of my other siblings have graduated from college, but I have a bachelors and masters degree now from MIT, and have worked hard to get where I am today. I am thankful that I live in a country that allows hard workers to succeed and be financially independent.
People are poor for a reason--they lack skills that people are willing to pay for. Instead of crying about inequities, people should focus on helping others, especially children, develop skills that can earn money. That means investing in education, supporting youth programs, providing job retraining for people who lose their jobs, etc. That also means encouraging people to be business owners so that they can create jobs that pay the bills for their employees.
It doesn't mean blindly giving money to lazy ass poor people who milk the system because they lack incentives to work. People in this world have to stop acting and thinking like victims. Unless you're mentally or physically handicapped, you have no reason not to be working your ass off. Yeah it sucks, but that's what it means to be an adult. And if you don't have enough to pay your bills, maybe you should move someplace that costs less, or spend your free time gaining skills that will increase your earning potential, or decrease your spend on non-essentials. Life is full of trade-offs. Fortunately, in a wonderful country like America, if you are willing to sacrifice in the short run, by saving, by working hard in school, by taking the risk to start a business, etc. you can reap huge rewards in the long run. Of course, nothing is guaranteed, but that's life.
And to the person whose mom is in financial trouble--perhaps you should stop jibber-jabbering on an online forum and get another job to help her out. Of course, that may be a trade-off you're not willing to make.
this is the truth
I am glad there are people out there that have some intelagence..... With that said let me tell you people who complain about not having money i use to be you untill i grew up i have been in jail i grew up on the streets i robbed people i have done a lote of bad things.. I am not bragging it is sad that now i look back and to see how ignorent i was you see i had my dad in jail i had my mom with 4 kids living on a park bench and in a car when we had enuff to aford it but my point is after all the dumb things i did i realized one day ..... I REALIZED THE RICH ARE RICH BECUASE THEY WHERE SMART ENUFF TO GET OFF THERE ASS AND FIND OOUT WHAT IT TAKES TO GET RICH ... WHILE THE MIDDLE CLASS AND THE POOR COMPLAIN ABOUT NOT HAVING ENUFF .. THE RICH WENT OUT AND LEARN HOW TO MAKE MONEY WORK FOR THEM IN STEAD OF WORKING FOR MONEY THERE WHOLE LIFES...
"People are poor for a
"People are poor for a reason--they lack skills that people are willing to pay for. "
"ADJUSTED FOR INFLATION, the federal minimum wage has fallen 42% since its peak in 1968."
The problem isn't that poor people don't have useful skills, it's that they are being paid less for the skills they do have.
I DIDNT KNOW RETARDS WERE ALLOWED TO POST.
if you have a 3rd grade reading and writing level, dont post, its hurting my eyes trying to decipher your ramblings.
You forgot Social Security. Someone making $100,000 a year pays approximately $6,200 a year in SS taxes(income cap is 97,400 this year up from $68,000 in 1998). Someone like Judge Judy or Dr. Phil who each make $30 MILLION a year pay the SAME 6,200 a year, or .02%. If they paid the same as the rest of us (6.2%), they would pay approximately $1,800,000 a year. And people wonder why SS is in trouble.
An old witticism--- If only the rich could get the poor to die for them what a wonderul life the poor would have.
Things that money cant buy --- longevity, health (mental or physical)
Its a sad thing when the uninformed get hold of economic information that they are not equipped to understand, much less discuss. And yes, that is you, Clara Jeffery. To any well educated economist, none of those figures are either shocking or appalling. My advice would be to tackle an easier subject and let the capable worry about economics. Best wishes.
Allowing Working Americans to Share in Economic Growth Again
There was a time in America when the real income of the average working person grew at a very satisfying rate. We all had good reason to believe that we would be better off than our parents, and that our children would be better off than us.
Thirty years ago, that time ended.
It’s not that our economy no longer grows -- although certainly our economy isn’t as healthy as it was in the 1950s and 1960s. It still does grow, but that growth is no longer shared by the great mass of working people that keep our economy going. It trickles up. The kinds of jobs that used to provide a good living for people who lacked a college education have been going away, moving overseas or being suppressed by cost competition from abroad. Quality manufacturing jobs have been replaced with relatively low-paying jobs as restaurant workers, store clerks, and the like. Families that used to do fine with a single income now need two, and those families spend more money on child-care, commuting expenses, and other costs of maintaining a second earner – all of which leave them with less disposable income than they used to have in the single earner days. Families that seek to raise their children to rise above this downward slide find that college costs continue to grow by leaps and bounds. College graduates send their children and grandchildren to college and graduate school, giving them access to the high-paying jobs in the global knowledge-based economy. But high-school graduates and their children are increasingly frozen out of that opportunity. Even among college graduates, more and more find themselves tied to a form of “productivity growth” commonly known as working more hours (for about the same money), sacrificing time for family and leisure, and being constantly bound to the office by an electronic leash.
The Shared Economic Growth proposal, explained at www.sharedeconomicgrowth.org , would change this trend in two ways. First, by making America the investment location of choice and increasing the efficiency of our economy, it would boost the overall growth of our economy and create more demand for American workers, giving them the power to negotiate for a bigger piece of the growth pie. Second, it would allow our progressive tax system to work the way it is supposed to. Working people saving for their children’s education, for retirement, or for anything else would get to keep up to 54% more of their pre-tax earnings, while people at the top of the earnings scale would be paying tax at the intended rate. This would help to level the playing field, which, in turn, should help ensure that everyone’s children would have a chance to get ahead. We could make the future bright again.
Wouldn’t that be better?
You can help to make this a reality. Visit www.sharedeconomicgrowth.org to see how.
Are you serious? I've worked my ass off for years and devoted a tonne of time and energy as well as sweat and some tears to get where I am as well. Now 11 years of "sucking it up" is getting taken away because the rich realize that if they raise the cost of everything they'll make more money. Wages are not keeping up to the greedy soulless bastards with all the money thus all the power. You are a fool. You are one of them. Go toot your own horn and feel special for yourself somewhere else.
previous post was in response to one Mr.Bryant a few lines above.
hi realy intrenste i am loeking i round to make mony si many carpe on this days to make mony like work from home dunsend work
You are right. I cannot not believe what people make these days. If you ask me people making more than 50K a year should be forced to give all the rest to poorer folks. Hard earned money my eye. I work my but off cleaning dishes and toilets and can never get ahead. The doctors are the worst. This dad of a kid on my son's soccer team is a cardiogist. Man he is loaded. It's not fair. The worst is the preacher living in the mansion at the end of my block. As far as I am concerned he is thief, and so are half the other rich slumloard home oweners in this town. There should be a law. You get one home, one used car, one computer, one TV, and that's it no matter who you are. Ok I'll I throw in a small boat if you live near the water and fish for food, but thats it.
The rich do not create jobs, that is propaganda. Demand for goods and services provides jobs by stimulating incentive to tap into the demand. The best way to create that demand is to put capital into the hands of those who would spend it. Give a poor person a dollar and he will spend it immediately, either on goods and services which stimulates the economy and job growth, or on education and innovation to make himself rich, and that will also stimulate the economy. Give a rich person a dollar and he won't change what he spends, he'll stick the dollar into a passive investment which won't do as well because that dollar is not immediately re-invested in the economy like the poor person's. There isn't even a need for rich people or corporations for that matter. Small business's can do just find if they aren't handicapped by regulations or monopolies.
In response to Bobby though. You should not dictate how much other people can have. As long as the way someone gets rich does not keep you down in some way, then it is ok. Whether they got there thru luck, hard work, or smart choices you should accept it. You are also a lot richer than the poor starving ethiopian child, but you are not helping them are you? We should not be forced to give to others, we should choose to give to others.
This just makes me sick. The days when hard work and dedication got you ahead in this world are gone. The only thing they get you now is more hard work (at the same pay). And to that Bryant A-hole, gone also are the days when a person can open his, or her, own business and hope to succeed. 99% of all small businesses are immediately crushed by major corporations. College education is simply out of reach for most Americans. For them, it's a choice of either going to college, or working to put a roof over their family's heads, and food on their plate. And to those of us that are lucky enough to get a college education. Face only a slightly better future than the rest. Still hard work, with almost no reward.
You people have no sense of being thankful. Anyone who isn't a retard, works hard, and makes the right decisions can succeed in America. You are pathetic whining about the greatest country in the world.
Maybe instead of crying a river you could learn how to budget and get another job. Life isn't supposed to be easy, you [deleted]ing ungrateful punks.
I work for a private company owned by a billionnaire. The policies that are generated there are so blatantly political but they do the owner's bidding because they are protecting their own turf. The good employees are spied upon and the bad ones get to be passive agressive bullies. It is a sad world when the only reason people put up with the crap is to keep their jobs because it is private without a union.
How much money does someone need to make and then says he is a philantropist. What bull[deleted]. Excuse the expression. I am looking to leave because it is my sanity and integrity that can no longer take it.
Amen Chris.....it is called deferred gratification people! Deferred gratification
Deferred gratification
Deferred gratification, delayed gratification, or emotional intelligence is the ability of a person to wait for things they want. This trait is critical for life success.
Nothing else if left to be said.
Go to school graduate go to college graduate, if you cant pay for college get a job save and then go to college, work two jobs maybe three, dont buy useless items, cook dont eat out, fill up the tank not 5 dollars at a time, life may be miserable now but it pay$ off.
Amen Bryant.....it is called deferred gratification people! Deferred gratification
Deferred gratification
Deferred gratification, delayed gratification, or emotional intelligence is the ability of a person to wait for things they want. This trait is critical for life success.
Nothing else if left to be said.
Go to school graduate go to college graduate, if you cant pay for college get a job save and then go to college, work two jobs maybe three, dont buy useless items, cook dont eat out, fill up the tank not 5 dollars at a time, life may be miserable now but it pay$ off.
yeah made a mistake chris im not so sure about
1. Some people have $ others do not.
2. Life is not fair.
3. You have a choice to work hard or not.
4. You have a choice to be a victim or not.
5. You have a choice to be an inspiring type or not.
The bottom line is the glass half empty or half full? Decisions we make are what makes a difference. We can be happy in a tent or unhappy in a mansion. Do your homework and make your choice. Control or abuse can be stopped by loving yourself enough to walk away. Ladders can be climbed in other places with integrity in your own company or by learning the rules of someone's else's the company (figure out what it is they want from you, if you are not interested in giving it leave and be happy).
Thats a good boy.You just continue on doing what you're told. Work your crummy little job and go home and watch DANCING WITH THE STARS or some s@!t and keep pretending everythings ok. Its time for the revolution mother@#$!ers!!!
I agree with Bob who's post stars off with "The rich do not create jobs, that is propaganda."
TOM: let the capable worry about economics
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what does this mean
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Ok for all those
Ok for all those comments regarding people being lazy and not working hard enough to progress throughout life is ridiculous. Also I do believe you missed the point the author was trying to convey. Although I do agree skilled workers should be compensated according to their specialization, but the differential between high end executives and people working minimum wage is absurd.
The problem that arises is that inflation is caused by ever increasing salaries, personal bonuses, and more positions in the company that have above average salaries(there are many other factors). This increases the cost for the company, which in turn leads to raising product cost for the consumer(inflation). It's not only one company itself causing this, but every company doing the same thing. Which leads to one company selling to another at a higher price, and that being passed along to the consumer. Which in turn all boils down to greed.
So the saying "The rich get richer, the poor get poorer." is right. This is partially because of inflation, and greed. As prices continue to rise, less then average salaries are not adjusted accordingly. This is due to the fact that companies want to keep production costs at a minimum while maximizing profits, essentially good business practices. So the money an individual earns, does not allow one to buy what it used to. Thus making an individual poorer in relation to lets say 10 years back.
This is even worse for a person working at a minimum wage job. With inflation on the rise, and wages not being adjusted puts these individuals further into poverty. So essentially the rich is taking from the poor. Although everyone wants to progress in the workforce and make more money. When does it become too much.
As to the people who say figures in the millions of dollars for salaries is not shocking, these are the people that look to the poor and say "I worked hard to get where I am, and if you want to achieve something you need to work hard too". These people neglect to look at how high-end salaries affect the general public.
To sum this up even those unskilled jobs need to be filled, and just because there are no educational requirements does not mean a person should barely be able to make a living. As to letting the "capable" worry about economics, the economics they focus on is upper class with little or no regard for low/middle class.
Thorough and Incisive -
Cheers for the provocative analysis!
I think it's also important to point out that this represents the *successful* application of capitalist principles, and is *not* an 'accident' or 'failure' of capitalism.
