a biographical note...

atush

Maybe 1949 was a depressing year to be born? ;-)

Jimmy_31

Thrugelmir wrote: »

The USA is a highly unequal society. Where people are left to fend for themselves.

Our society leaves us to fend for ourselves, unless you have kids of course.

Thrugelmir

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

They also have the ability to be a highly adaptive "get on your bike" society.

Had a get on your bike society. The economy is no longer creating jobs at a fast enough rate to cope with the increase in working population. So the old adages no longer apply.

Joe_Bloggs

Had a get on your bike society.

British Cycling is at its peak. Given 'Boris Bikes' and Sir Chris Hoy, Mark Cavendish et al.

Despair is for losers. Solutions to problems are found by winners.
J_B.

John_Pierpoint

Thrugelmir wrote: »

Had a get on your bike society. The economy is no longer creating jobs at a fast enough rate to cope with the increase in working population. So the old adages no longer apply.

Why? OK we have known for over 100 years that "There is no wage at which a labourer, with a shovel and a pick, can compete with a steam driven digger". Could this just be a matter of workers not being prepared to cut their wages to a market clearing level or are these people now unemployable?

Ilya_Ilyich

UK gini coefficient since 1979. Clearly the public sector is bleeding the country !!!!ing dry. Or... not.

John_Pierpoint

I am not sure this demonstrates anything about the public sector versus the private sector.

The Gini coefficient measures the income equality of its citizens.

This upwards sloping graph shows that since the 1970's there has been a "to those that have shall be given" effect making the rich richer and possibly the poor poorer.
In spite of the theoretical redistribution of income via the growing tax system.

Ilya_Ilyich

My point is that the public sector primarily redistributes wealth from the wealthier to the poorer via taxation. If the wealthier are growing proportionately richer then it seems unlikely that society is distributing 'too much' wealth to the poor.

System

If you managed to live through the Cuban missile crisis without being worried, but are now scared by "the banks" then I advise keeping the paper bag over your head.

IveSeenTheLight

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

Why? OK we have known for over 100 years that "There is no wage at which a labourer, with a shovel and a pick, can compete with a steam driven digger". Could this just be a matter of workers not being prepared to cut their wages to a market clearing level or are these people now unemployable?

In Malaysia, I once witnessed about 4 people manually mixing cement on a building site.
When I asked why didn;t they use a cement mixer, I was told they could hire 10 labourers to one cement mixer so it was financially prudent to hire the manual labour.

That said, as I understand it there is no benefit system in Malaysia. You either work or don't earn.