Blog #1 Kristof

U.S.A., Land of Limitations by Nicholas Kristof, discusses the class gaps in the American society. Kristof claims that “In the United States, too often the best predictor of where we end up is where we start… The kind of society in which your outcome is largely determined by your beginning.” In simpler terms, if you were born in the lower class, you will most likely stay in the lower class and rightly so for the middle and upper classes. Kristof raises the issue of the increasingly larger class gap and the lack of opportunity for the lower class people. He points out the disadvantages that the lower class people have. Ranging from poverty to emotional comfort. The Developmental Assets Framework worksheet by Search Institute, is researched to have shown that the more assets a child has, the less likely it is for them to participate in a risky behavior. On the other hand, the less assets a child has is associated with a greater chance of participating in a risky behavior. Now, middle and upper class children will have a larger amount of these assets thus, giving them a better opportunity in creating a safe, successful life. While the lower class children will have less of these assets giving them little opportunity in life. This research proves that the class gap eliminates opportunities to those in the lower class compared to the opportunity and chances the upper class children have.

A great picture that illustrates this gap is shown in CartoonStock.com’s cartoon. This photo represents the hole in between the “Haves” and Have nots.” In other words, the rich and the poor. The “V” in “Poverty” represents the cliff that people would have to climb in order to change sides, it is almost impossible.

Economic Inequality: It’s Far Worse than you Think by Nicholas Fits, further explains the economic issue in today’s society. Many people do not know how wealthy, the wealthy really are. He states, “The top 20% of US households own more than 84% of the wealth, and the bottom 40% combine for a paltry 0.3%. The Walton family, for example, has more wealth than 42% of American families combined.” This statistic and life situation is insane. One family has more money than almost half of the American families. For someone to acquire money like this he or she must be born into it. Statistically speaking, as Kristof worded it, “A child born in the bottom quintile of incomes in the United States has only a 4 percent chance of rising to the top quintile…” A great photo that further explains this topic was illustrated by David Horsey. He uses dessert as a metaphor to how money is distributed throughout the American social class’. The rich have almost all of the pie, the middle class has one slice, and the lower class only has crumbs. Horsey illustrated Fit’s research on the percentages of economic wealth beautifully. The poor in his picture has about .3% of the pie while the rich hold 84% of the pie.

          Together, these articles and illustrations paint an all too real world for many American families. I agree with with Kristof when he says "That's what the presidential candidates should be discussing." because these are the real world situations that will be the fall of America. Both Kristof and Fits discuss how Canada is surpassing the social mobility of the United States. If we do not change our ways to become like our fellow nations than we will stay on a downward spiral.