1. Widening economic inequality from 1970s has been influenced by several factors. First of all, the structure of the economy started to change, and it caused a flattening of wages in the middle class and poor with the considerable income increase for those at the top. The second problem is the decrease in tax rates for the rich; however, the richest people do not spend much, and the money does not circulate in the economy, so the resources are not invested in the middle class and the poor, and the economy is not functioning well. Other factors that also affect inequality are decline of middle class, globalization and technological progress.
2. Inequality is undermining democracy, as the political power is shifted from the middle class to the rich. The wealth creates capacity to influence decision-making, the elections and policies through lobbying. As the rich have the access to power, they have a mechanism to promote decisions that favor them and oppose to the decisions supported by the middle class and the poor that is genuinely undemocratic. These trends show how social inequality and political power are interrelated and may lead to polarization and conflicts between classes.
3. Conflict theory most accurately aligns with Reich’s vision of social inequality, as it claims that social stratification benefits the rich and oppresses the poor. Reich’s claims to be a capitalist; however, he criticizes current state of capitalism that creates a system, where 1% of the rich population wins at the expense of the majority. The current trends, such as tax breaks for rich, corrupting political campaigns and little possibilities to move upward the social ladder stiffen the economy and undermine the interests of the middle class and the poor.
Work cited
Kornbluth, Jacob, Jennifer Chaiken, Sebastian Dungan, Robert B. Reich, Svetlana Cvetko, Dan Krauss, Marco D'Ambrosio, and Robert B. Reich. Inequality for All. Anchor Bay Entertainment, Inc., 2013.
