Now look at the bottom 50% and extend the horizon a little further.
From the peak of their share in 1988 to 2023:
UK: 12.3% to 4.6% = -2.67x
Germany: 7.6% to 3.4% = -2.23x
France: 9.7% to 4.9% = -1.97
US: 1.8% to 0.9% = -2x
And since wealth isn’t evenly distributed in the bottom 50%, this means the bottom parts have fallen even lower.
Then add the fact that government-provided services and safety nets like welfare, pensions, healthcare, education etc. function as a the largest part of the bottom 50% wealth. Consider how austerity and climbing retirement age affect that.
What you’re saying is that things aren’t as bad as they are elsewhere. True. But people notice and react to changes in their environments and the trends are in the the same direction as in the US. Which makes sense because the processes giving rise to the those trends are the same. E.g. declining union density. The slopes and starting points of the trends are different since the EU does a better job at slowing down accumulation, and so the current states are different, but without a change in direction, for now the US is Europe’s eventual future.
Now look at the bottom 50% and extend the horizon a little further.
From the peak of their share in 1988 to 2023:
And since wealth isn’t evenly distributed in the bottom 50%, this means the bottom parts have fallen even lower.
Then add the fact that government-provided services and safety nets like welfare, pensions, healthcare, education etc. function as a the largest part of the bottom 50% wealth. Consider how austerity and climbing retirement age affect that.
What you’re saying is that things aren’t as bad as they are elsewhere. True. But people notice and react to changes in their environments and the trends are in the the same direction as in the US. Which makes sense because the processes giving rise to the those trends are the same. E.g. declining union density. The slopes and starting points of the trends are different since the EU does a better job at slowing down accumulation, and so the current states are different, but without a change in direction, for now the US is Europe’s eventual future.
Removed by mod