There's this godawful YouTube video floating around on the Internet right now, called "Inequality of Wealth in America". This is nothing new. We all know some are wealthier than others. Some are poorer than others. It's the luck of the draw. It's the way the cookie crumbles. That's life.
A friend of mine suggested I watch and blog about this video, because it provides no factual backup for the statements it makes. It has a lot of cute little graphics, with color bars moving up and down and even cute little stick figure people, but there are no facts. I looked at all of the websites listed as "references" at the end of the video, but they are all blogs and articles, not actual statistical sources, like the IRS, for example. Sure, as a blogger, I get it...I don't offer cites for my claims, but my blog is an opinion piece and I can provide cites if requested.
Even if there was a factual basis for the claims made in this video, there's one point the producer of this video fails to make. In America, you can start out as one of the poorest Americans and you can end up as one of the wealthiest. The opposite can happen, too, if you make poor decisions. Sure, there are the people born into wealth, who inherit a name, a company, or just money, but there are many people who start from nothing and end up with millions or even billions. Dr. Jerry Buss, the late owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, is an example of this. He came from humble beginnings, got his Ph.D. in chemistry at the University of Souther California and then turned a $1,000.00 investment in an apartment building into a multi-million dollar empire. He bought the Lakers in 1979 for $20 Million and now they are worth $1 Billion. This is just one example of many of people who created something from nothing.
Another point this video fails to acknowledge is how much of our nation's tax revenue is paid by the wealthiest 1% to 10%. Most people don't realize that the top 10% pay 71% of the taxes in our nation. The top 50% pay 98% of the taxes in our nation, which means the bottom 50% pays 2% of the taxes. In fact, according to IRS Data for 2010, of the 1.35 million taxpayers that make up the top 1%, they earned 18.9% of the gross national income, but paid 37.4% of all federal income taxes paid in 2010. The bottom 95% earned 66.2% of the gross national income and paid 40.9% of all taxes paid in 2010.
So when everyone cries about tax cuts for the wealthy, they need to understand that the wealthy pay the most in taxes, therefore they need the most tax cuts. Some people say "well they should pay more, they have so much". Well, they have so much, because they worked hard for it, or they inherited it from someone who worked hard for it, or they managed it well, or they were just plain lucky. The wealthy even get taxed when they die and money is passed to their heirs. The producer even refers to dreaded socialism as "dreaded" and says "We all know that won't work. We have to encourage people to work and work hard to achieve that good old American dream." Do I detect a bit of sarcasm in his voice? Sounds to me like he thinks socialism is a pretty good idea.
Now, I'm not standing here as a middle class woman defending the wealthy. No, I often envy the ladies who lunch, the "Real Housewives", so to speak, who can workout, pamper themselves, lunch and shop all day, while I stress out going to court and negotiating divorce and custody settlements. There are days I wish that their life was my life, but hey...my life is my life and it's not a bad one. Yeah, I have to get up in the morning, drive to work and deal with angry people all day, but that's the luck of the draw, that's the way the cookie crumbles....that's life.
Over 4 million people watched this video. Perhaps, if that many people spent their time working or trying to do something innovative, they'd be part of the top 10% and not part of the bottom 50%. Success is there for those who want it and are willing to work for it. I wonder how much the producer of this video has made from it. I wonder what percentile he falls in now.
Thanks for listening,
The Urban Republican
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