American Economics: Policies That Enrich the Few at the Expense of the Many

Cliff Vaughn has posted some of the comments that were cut from Ethics Daily's new DVD on "Sacred Texts, Social Duty." 

A quote from Ali Faruk, a policy analyst at the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, described the current American economic system most succinctly -- "It's about policies designed to further enrich the few at the expense of the many."

Ralph Martire, executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Tax and Budget Accountability in Chicago, pinned the blame on "trickle down" economics:

"There is no data to support the stance that the way you grow the economy is to cut taxes on the wealthy and support corporate giveaways," said Martire, a Catholic. "In fact, all the data runs the opposite."

"Trickle-down has never worked," he continued. "The data are compelling."

"Our economy grew its best late '40s, after World War II, '50s and '60s, up until 1970, when low-income working families and middle-income families had their greatest growth in income,"

Martire said. "In real terms, after inflation, these families were getting paid more every year. And by getting paid more, they could spend more in the local economy and in the national economy."

Martire added that with the U.S. economy being nearly 70 percent consumer spending, growth in the bottom and middle sectors of wage-earners meant that "the entire economy took off."

It is obvious that we are now living in a banana republic.  I wonder what a chart of the wealth distribution of the U.S. population by percentiles in the 50's and 60's would look like.