...In the article “Beyond Crime and Punishment: Prisons and Inequality,” by Western & Pettit, the explosion of the penal population after 1970 actually does not have anything to do with increasing crime rates at all. After the year 1970, crime rates both increased and decreased, but the imprisoned population has been increasing every year since 1974. Western & Pettit looked deeper and found that a key factor to the increasing imprisoned population has something to do with drug offenders, which account for the fast-growing rate of incarceration. Though the war on drugs provides an explanation for why there was an explosion of imprisoned people, what explains the relationship between high incarceration rates and inequality? Western & Pettit speak...
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...AMERICA’S ECONOMY 1. America’s economy is remaking itself led by the private sector 2. Until 2008 growth relied too heavily on consumer spending and house-buying, both of them financed by foreign savings channelled through an undercapitalised financial system 3. Recoveries from debt driven burst always take a long time as households and banks repair their balance sheet. 4. NOW SCENARIO: * America’s houses are now amongst the world’s most undervalued (19% below fair value). * American banks have written off debts and raised equity faster than Europe because of the regulators * American capital ratios are among the world’s highest. And consumers have cut back, too: debts are now 114% of income from 133% in 2007 * EXPORT STRENGTH: The weaker dollar explains the decrease in trade deficit from 6% of GDP to 4% * richer China has become the third-largest market for America’s exports, up 53% since 2007 * American exporters are changing. Some of the products—Boeing jets, Microsoft software and Hollywood films—are familiar. But there is a boom, too, in high-value services (architecture, engineering and finance) and a growing “app economy”, nurtured by Facebook, Apple and Google, which employs more than 300,000 people; its games, virtual merchandise and so on sell effortlessly across borders * American manufacturers are recapturing some markets once lost to imports, and pioneering new processes such as 3D printing. * Net imports of oiil by...
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...The Failure of Education Policy in the United States The United States has always struggled to find a way to provide an education system that provides a solid educational foundation for America’s youth. The government’s use of education policies to help better America’s education system many say has failed along with politicians attempts to solve this problem. In this paper we will be searching for an answer to a question that plagues many concerned parents and many politicians as well: Has the education policy failed in the United States? In order to answer this question we must look back on the historical background of the issue, we must review the past and present policies in place and we must identify the proposed solutions. It is our intention, with this research, to understand why or why not our education policies have failed America’s youth. There is a major problem in America and it is not one that is hard to spot if you are a concerned parent looking at your child’s test scores, a student enrolled in America’s public schools, a politician seeking to pass a new policy or even a concerned citizen, because when it comes to building a strong, intellectual country Americans’ know we need an education system that adequately prepares our youth. With so many statistics showing the decline of test scores it is not hard to identify the educational problem in America. However, there are many different beliefs as to why the education policy is failing in the United States; however...
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...Social hierarchy has existed since the beginning of time. Yet, the inner workings of the plethora of classes that social hierarchy produces have often been ignored. In America, many people deny that there is a class system at all; This could not be more false. The social hierarchy functioning in the society of America is not only present, the gaps of the stratification system are growing to create greater inequality. Through a closer look at the types of social hierarchy and how they are portrayed through America's culture, it is obvious that social classes do in fact exist. To grasp the concept of social class in the United States, one must first understand what social hierarchy is. Social hierarchy is the acknowledgement that a society is divided unequally. This division creates classes, which can be derived from combination of many factors. There are three dominating stratification systems in our world. The first is the caste system. The caste system is a very unbending structure of inequality. In a caste system, moving from class to class is virtually impossible. Through hard work and perseverance one is still not able to rise in class. Not only are the classes inflexible, they are quite rigid in that there is a thick line between each one. Take India, for example, where a strict caste system is in play. There are five exact levels on their pyramid. At the top lies teachers and religious people. One step down are the warriors. Below the warriors they have the merchants...
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...Inequality for All After watching this extra-ordinary and well presented idea of inequality in United States of America by Robert Reich I kept on thinking for hours as I see many of the workers all around every time and every day I come across so many people who are low-waged and living a middle class life. I feel myself as one of those middle-class person as I see them surviving the odds and still trying to lead a respectable life. Since I got deeply touched by the documentary here are some points that I would like to discuss regarding my reflection about inequality for all. Inequalities of many kinds exist in our society. The society itself is a big structure of many social divisions. We can divide any society in many social groups like religion, caste, class, sexism, racism etc etc. The biggest difference in all of us comes with class that is lead by our capacity to consume. The main criteria for division in social class are dominated by occupation and property. We can never fully eliminate this inequality factor among us, however it can be managed by state to provide welfare to its citizens. Here, our main focus is inequality of social class. The distribution of wealth is unequal and half of the wealth of entire country is possessed by only few men. Giant fast-food companies have the largest gap between the pay of CEOs and workers of any industry, with a CEO-to-worker compensation ratio of more than 1,000-to-one. The practical choice isn’t between capitalism and Welfare-state...
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...the time of slavery until the twenty-first century, race has been the driving element regarding opportunities for people of African descent. The question of whether this has changed presently is ambiguous. America has certainly evolved from a place of slavery and segregation to the self-proclaimed “Land of Opportunities” offering equal rights and prospects to all, yet there are still signs of inequality within the social construct of the nation. If one were to take a look at the American work field, they would notice the differences in positions acquired by African-Americans and Caucasians. African-Americans typically work minimum-wage jobs, living paycheck to paycheck and if they are fortunate enough to acquire an adequate paying job; their employers are Caucasians who usually own the major businesses and corporations. This inevitable conflict has emerged from America’s past history of unfair and unequal treatment of people of color. The American society has not completely eradicated the problem with racial discrimination and inequality within the workforce which has created the growing wealth gap. In the United States, issues of race and class are tied to together like a chain of DNA; one cannot address the issue of class without referring to the demographics of race. The methodology of determining the variations in social class was established in the mid-1960s and has not changed in the most latter years. Within the time span, there have been many studies conducted that...
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...Name Institution Course Date Income Inequality: A Hindrance to Retirement Security Holland, K. (2015). On retirement security, US rank far behind others. CNBC. Retrieved 8 November 2015, from http://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/09/ In this article, the author suggests that America lags behind 18 other countries in retirement security because of the high-income inequality observed in many states in America. The author suggests that according to the recent study, the United States offers little support for retirement security services unlike other developed countries. The author quotes Sweden, Denmark, and Switzerland as among countries that have good retirement security systems. Many characteristics define these economies. First, most of the nations that score higher than the United States in retirement security have high tax burdens. However, these countries have a narrow income inequality. In addition, most countries are also improving on the gap between the poor and the rich. The universal healthcare schemes provided by these countries have also contributed to the good ratings of the most countries that have better retirement schemes than the United States (Holland, 2015). The author has focused on highlighting the importance of retirement security as a key pillar in economic developments. The author clearly states that the United States social security problem lies with the expanding income inequality. The author states that in order to have a good retirement...
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...Name Institution Course Date Income Inequality: A Hindrance to Retirement Security Holland, K. (2015). On retirement security, US rank far behind others. CNBC. Retrieved 8 November 2015, from http://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/09/ In this article, the author suggests that America lags behind 18 other countries in retirement security because of the high-income inequality observed in many states in America. The author suggests that according to the recent study, the United States offers little support for retirement security services unlike other developed countries. The author quotes Sweden, Denmark, and Switzerland as among countries that have good retirement security systems. Many characteristics define these economies. First, most of the nations that score higher than the United States in retirement security have high tax burdens. However, these countries have a narrow income inequality. In addition, most countries are also improving on the gap between the poor and the rich. The universal healthcare schemes provided by these countries have also contributed to the good ratings of the most countries that have better retirement schemes than the United States (Holland, 2015). The author has focused on highlighting the importance of retirement security as a key pillar in economic developments. The author clearly states that the United States social security problem lies with the expanding income inequality. The author states that in order to have a good retirement...
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...capital gains. This has again brought the topic of America’s widening income gap to the front page. While it is true that the wealth of America has long been dominated by a small number of people, most Americans do not see it as economic inequality or an obstacle to the development of the economy, which can be explained from two aspects—culture and economy. Instead, the real problem is the workers’ slow-paced wage increase, especially compared with the rising health care costs. Admittedly, most of the household income and wealth in America are occupied by a small minority of people at the very top, and actually the income gap has been rising at an increasing pace for the last few years. According to the data released by the Internal Revenue Service in 2005, 21.2% of all the household income went to the top 1% of Americans, the percentage of which was just 19% in 2004, and 20.8% in 2000—the previous high hit due to the skyrocket stock market. First of all, however, are the income disparity and economic inequality the same thing? Definitely not. As pointed out by Ladd and Bowman, rooted in the concept of equality for Americans is the notion of “equality of opportunity” (33). Great disparity in income distribution among social members can be tolerated as long as they can perceive that they have the opportunity to move up the economic ladder, and the rules are fair to them ( Ladd and Bowman, 3).In a national survey about what Americans think are the reasons for riches and poverty...
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...Name Institution Course Date Income Inequality: A Hindrance to Retirement Security Holland, K. (2015). On retirement security, US rank far behind others. CNBC. Retrieved 8 November 2015, from http://www.cnbc.com/2015/02/09/ In this article, the author suggests that America lags behind 18 other countries in retirement security because of the high-income inequality observed in many states in America. The author suggests that according to the recent study, the United States offers little support for retirement security services unlike other developed countries. The author quotes Sweden, Denmark, and Switzerland as among countries that have good retirement security systems. Many characteristics define these economies. First, most of the nations that score higher than the United States in retirement security have high tax burdens. However, these countries have a narrow income inequality. In addition, most countries are also improving on the gap between the poor and the rich. The universal healthcare schemes provided by these countries have also contributed to the good ratings of the most countries that have better retirement schemes than the United States (Holland, 2015). The author has focused on highlighting the importance of retirement security as a key pillar in economic developments. The author clearly states that the United States social security problem lies with the expanding income inequality. The author states that in order to have a good retirement...
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...Arnold Jimenez History 110 2014/11/21 Professor Radzikowski Gender Inequalities Our society is plagued with many inequalities, these inequalities range from education to wealth, yet I believe one of the most prominent forms of inequality today is aimed towards gender. Gender inequality refers to unequal treatment or negative perceptions of individuals based on their gender. As of 2012, the World Economic Forum ranks the United States 22nd in terms of gender equality out of 135 countries. America often employs Gender stratification causing the ranking of the sexes in such a way that women are unequal in power, resources, prestige, or presumed worth. For my essay I shall explain the three most prominent forms of gender inequality: Childhood, society and professionalism. Gender inequalities have large-scale consequences for society, as long as we continue to perpetuate gender inequalities men and women will never be considered equal. In the 1800’s during America’s farm economy, women enjoyed and lived equally with men on a family. Farm men and women typically did different jobs men did heavy field labor, woodwork, repairs and worked with large edge tools. In contrast women preformed food preservation and clothing preparation, a farm family could not survive without the skilled labor of both men and women, and in this sense men and women's contribution to the economy of the family farm was equal. Furthermore children were raised and nurtured by both men and women, there were...
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...Cammie Denton Dr. Foster WR 122 April 17, 2016 Rhetorical Analysis of Barack Obama’s Remarks on Economic Mobility On December 4th, 2013 Barack Obama spoke on the subject of income inequality and upward mobility. This speech was delivered to, and hosted by, the Center for American Progress (CAP). The president uses striking language to appeal to the emotion and logic of the audience. Obama executes his appeals in a variety of ways with the express purpose of painting the issue of growing inequality and decreased upward mobility as the “defining challenge of our time.” President Obama describes these issues as what drives everything he does as POTUS. Obama’s speech was quite intellectual and technical, peppered in detail with the numbers and statistics of current social and economic inequalities, appealing to logos. While he builds his argument based on these substantial facts, the overall feeling of his language is that of compassion. This compassion seems to drive his purpose and thus emotionally connecting to his audience. Further, Obama appeals to ethos during his speech as he outlines how current market-caused inequalities are threatening everything that makes America great. Obama masterfully balances his passionate language with solid facts and straight-forward logic in this effectively persuasive speech. Before expanding upon the specifics of the rhetorical methods utilized by the president in this speech, I think it is important to highlight that the audience (CAP)...
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...powers of the Asia-Pacific. Author Hugh White’s argues that China’s challenge to America’s economic pre-eminence could succeed where others have failed because China has something the earlier challengers lacked: China’s workforce is four times the size of American’s. If China’s productivity approaches American level and Chinese workers become one quarter as productive as American workers, the two nations’ GDPs will be equal. That is what’s happening. China’s economic fundamentals give no reason to assume that China’s growth will stop. It’s political system is under pressure and probably have to evolve but there is also no reason to assume that this cannot happen in a way that allows China’s economy to keep growing. He concluded that China most likely will overtake the United States to become the largest economy in the world in the next few years. As China’s economic growth is translating into growing strategic and political power, it is no longer willing to accept the status quo and US as the sole leader in Asia. Fear and honor, as White argues, are the mainsprings of rivalry between United States and China. China fears that if America remains the leader in Asia, it will use its power and position to limit China’s growth, constrain its influence and undermine its political system. America fears that if China becomes more powerful, it will push America out of Asia, threatening America’s global position. The military balance between America and China is critical to...
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...equality and improving civil rights, the topic of race still looms over our nation and sparks many different debates. The division of the 21st-century isn’t as obvious as it used to be in the past, there are no “Whites Only” sign to direct us and the simplistic black-white concept of race no longer exists. The issue lies much deeper than we could ever imagine and its fast-paced change is making it difficult to comprehend. The increase in the multiracial population further adds to the complexity of this topic and our ideas on race. That is why Center for American Progress located in Washington, D.C. decided to tackle this matter head-on by opening an in-depth panel discussion entitled “The Meaning of Race in a 21st-Century America” to dig into America’s history to find the origins of race, address race and ethnicity today as the nation’s demographics are shifting, and emphasize the importance of the U.S. Census to accurately represent the people of this. Featured panelists included Rinku Sen, President and Executive Director of Race Forward: The Center for Racial Justice Innovation; Julie Dowling, Associate Professor, Department of Latina/Latino Studies, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Roderick Harrison, Senior Research Fellow, Civic Engagement and Governance Institute, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies; and Hilary O. Shelton, Washington Bureau Director and Senior Vice President for Advocacy for NAACP. Vanessa Cardenas, Vice President of Progress 2050 at Center...
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...discussing. The candidates have made themselves known, and with candidates such as Donald Trump, there is plenty to talk about. However, there are some candidates which the news media simply will not cover, whether it be because of their unpopularity, controversial viewpoints, or bias of sponsors. Senator Bernie Sanders is one of these such candidates, and being a self-declared Democratic socialist, he is a candidate whom the news media would rather ignore. The first Democratic Debate on October 13 (hosted by CNN), Hillary Clinton, being a previous candidate and well-known politician, was promptly declared to have “won” the debate by CNN, despite most focus groups declaring Sanders to be the winner. During the debate, Bernie Sanders made what many considered to be bold, revolutionary statements, such as his belief that college tuition should be nonexistent. Bernie Sanders is the best candidate for President of the United States for 2016 because he will lessen the wealth gap, strive for...
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