There’s no their there
13th April 2011
Russ Roberts at Café Hayek spanks Joseph Stiglitz of Vanity Fair, who does the usual ‘progressive’ trick of inappropriately lumping shit together and drawing bogus conclusions therefrom.
So compared to 25 years ago, the share of income going to the top 1% has doubled, from 12% to almost 25%. But the conclusion that Stiglitz draws, does not follow. It does not follow that their lot in life has improved considerably. There’s no “their” there. The people who were in the top 1% 25 years ago are not the same people in the top 25% today. The numbers that are quoted are two snapshots at two different times. The correct statement is that the people who are in the top 1% today earn a larger share of the income pie than the people who were in the top 1% 25 years ago.