Dear Council Members

Dear Council Members,

I'm unable to attend the city council hearing today regarding the LES budget and in particular funding for conservation and renewable energy.  I lieu of that, I'm sending you this letter in support of this funding and am attaching the survey information that I recently sent to LES advising them on what my own priorities and concerns would be for such an effort.

( E-mail continues . . . )

Dear Council Members

Dear Council Members,

I'm unable to attend the city council hearing today regarding the LES budget and in particular funding for conservation and renewable energy.  I lieu of that, I'm sending you this letter in support of this funding and am attaching the survey information that I recently sent to LES advising them on what my own priorities and concerns would be for such an effort.

( E-mail continues . . . )

Rich to Poor Ratio

This one inspired byruderod  by his recent post. It's a ratio of the wealth of the top fifth vs. the bottom fifth. Looks like a good measure of "Third Worldism" to me.  Countries with wealth and a serious bimodal distribution of that wealth. 

Ah, the good old days of the Clinton Administration.   How low are we shooting to pine for them, eh?  :)

Looks like this press release, "State Income Equality Continued to Grow in Most States in the 1990s, Despite Economic Growth and Tight Labor Markets", from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities might reference the original 2000 info. The press release for "Pulling Apart: A State-by State Analysis of Income Trends" for April 23, 2002 is quoted below for the updated analysis.

"In all but five states, income inequality has increased over the past 20 years; prior to the late 1970s, economic growth in the United States was more evenly shared.

The state with the greatest increase in income inequality over the 20-year period was New York, a result of a decline in real income of $800 for the bottom fifth of families there, coupled with an increase in the average income of the top fifth of $56,800 (1999 dollars).

In addition to New York, the states with the largest increase in inequality over the last two decades were Oregon, Massachusetts, California, Ohio, Connecticut, Kentucky, North Carolina, West Virginia and Arizona. Meanwhile, the gap in income between the top 20 percent of families and the bottom 20 percent narrowed significantly in only one state — Alaska — and was unchanged in Arkansas, Mississippi, South Carolina and South Dakota."

Or course there is always the Heritage Foundation to provide us with the proper Orwellian understanding of this information.   Class warfare being only something poor people and malcontents like John Edwards are active in, of course. 

Two Americas: One Rich, One Poor? Understanding Income Inequality in the United States - 24 Aug 2004

"Still, the top fifth of U.S. households (with incomes above $84,000) remain perennial targets of class-warfare enmity. These families, however, perform a third of all labor in the economy."

THANK YOU PARIS FOR ALL YOU DO!

Rich to Poor Ratio

This one inspired byruderod  by his recent post. It's a ratio of the wealth of the top fifth vs. the bottom fifth. Looks like a good measure of "Third Worldism" to me.  Countries with wealth and a serious bimodal distribution of that wealth. 

Ah, the good old days of the Clinton Administration.   How low are we shooting to pine for them, eh?  :)

Looks like this press release, "State Income Equality Continued to Grow in Most States in the 1990s, Despite Economic Growth and Tight Labor Markets", from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities might reference the original 2000 info. The press release for "Pulling Apart: A State-by State Analysis of Income Trends" for April 23, 2002 is quoted below for the updated analysis.

"In all but five states, income inequality has increased over the past 20 years; prior to the late 1970s, economic growth in the United States was more evenly shared.

The state with the greatest increase in income inequality over the 20-year period was New York, a result of a decline in real income of $800 for the bottom fifth of families there, coupled with an increase in the average income of the top fifth of $56,800 (1999 dollars).

In addition to New York, the states with the largest increase in inequality over the last two decades were Oregon, Massachusetts, California, Ohio, Connecticut, Kentucky, North Carolina, West Virginia and Arizona. Meanwhile, the gap in income between the top 20 percent of families and the bottom 20 percent narrowed significantly in only one state — Alaska — and was unchanged in Arkansas, Mississippi, South Carolina and South Dakota."

Or course there is always the Heritage Foundation to provide us with the proper Orwellian understanding of this information.   Class warfare being only something poor people and malcontents like John Edwards are active in, of course. 

Two Americas: One Rich, One Poor? Understanding Income Inequality in the United States - 24 Aug 2004

"Still, the top fifth of U.S. households (with incomes above $84,000) remain perennial targets of class-warfare enmity. These families, however, perform a third of all labor in the economy."

THANK YOU PARIS FOR ALL YOU DO!