Civil War Hollow

civil war hollow
How much more will the Middle Class be hollowed out through job loses, stagnate incomes, lose of health care?

and the other things which once made America great before the social order breaks down and revolution begins?

We only have to look to Egypt, Libya and soon Greece to see the end result of massive imbalances of wealth and its effect on social order.

As corporations and their paid for politicians in Congress allow the Middle Class to become impoverished for the benefit of the wealthy, at some point things will have to break down.

Does America still have a strong enough Democracy that the people can wrest control of their futures or will violence and Civil War result. Has our Democracy been usurped by corporate money to the point of no return?

I think we all fear that it will, but how soon is the question.

Well said. It will continue as long as we support it.

Who Rules America? Wealth, Income, and Power

http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html

The 400 wealthiest Americans have the combined wealth of half of the rest of everyone in the country. If that’s not class warfare, what is? Their goal is to destroy government and unions, because government and unions are the only counter-balance against them to protect the middle class. To that end, they’re buying the candidates of their choice.
A huge share of the nation’s economic growth over the past 30 years has gone to the top one-hundredth of one percent, who now make an average of $27 million per household. Eighty cents of every dollar has gone to the top 1% in the last 25 years.

The average annual income for the bottom 90 percent of us is only $31,244.

The richest 10% controls 2/3 of all of America’s wealth. Note: The 2007 data (the most current) doesn’t reflect the impact of the housing market crash. In 2007, the bottom 60% of Americans had 65% of their net worth tied up in their homes. The top 1%, in contrast, had just 10%. The housing crisis has no doubt further swelled the share of total net worth held by the super rich. The super rich have grabbed the bulk of the past three decades’ gains.

Very interesting charts and data here. As one fellow said, “Unbelievable…every single voter in America needs to read this and explain why they aren’t outraged and marching with torches.”

http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/02/income-inequality-in-america-chart-graph

Quote of the Week
“The rich are always going to say that, you know, just give us more money and we’ll go out and spend more and then it will all trickle down to the rest of you. But that has not worked the last 10 years, and I hope the American public is catching on.”
Warren Buffett

Inequality Index

• Percentage of U.S. total income in 1976 that went to the top 1% of American households: 8.9.
• Percentage in 2007: 23.5.
• Only other year since 1913 that the top 1 percent’s share was that high: 1928.
• Combined net worth of the Forbes 400 wealthiest Americans in 2007: $1.5 trillion.
• Combined net worth of the poorest 50% of American households: $1.6 trillion.
• U.S. minimum wage, per hour: $7.25.
• Hourly pay of Chesapeake Energy CEO Aubrey McClendon, for an 80-hour week: $27,034.74.
• Average hourly wage in 1972, adjusted for inflation: $20.06.
• In 2008: $18.52.

Normalized to 1979, the top 1% have seen their share of America’s income more than double. The bottom 90% have seen their portion shrink.

If you aren’t in the top 1%, then you’re getting a bum deal and you shouldn’t vote Republican.

http://www.businessinsider.com/15-charts-about-wealth-and-inequality-in-america-2010-4#if-you-arent-in-the-top-1-then-youre-getting-a-bum-deal-15#ixzz16axkEQkD