STWR - Share The World's Resources

“More than 80 percent of the indigenous people in Latin America live in extreme poverty according to a new report published Wednesday by the World Bank which proposes more social programs, among other things, in order to help this marginalized group.

We all believe that a growing economy is a good thing. Corporate successes make America strong, and international monetary policies have been designed to promote economic growth around the world.

There is a “mystery” we must explain: How is it that as corporate investments and foreign aid and international loans to poor countries have increased dramatically throughout the world over the last half century, so has poverty? 

DAVOS, Switzerland - A squeeze on middle-class workers across the world's developed economies is stoking fears of an anti-globalization backlash as the world's corporate and political elite gathered Wednesday for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss Alps.

Newly released data from two separate sources reveal just how skewed the distribution of economic growth has been over the current recovery.  Data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis through the third quarter of 2006 show that a historically high share of corporate income is going into profits and interest (i.e., capital income) rather than employee compensation.  And a newly released Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis of household incomes shows that a greater share of this capital income goes to the richest households than at any time since the CBO began tracking such trends.  In other words, our economy is producing more capital income and that type of income is more likely to go to those at the very top of the income scale.  Together, these dynamics are contributing to a uniquely skewed recovery.

I see that the Economist had a recent cover story entitled: "Rich Man, Poor Man: The Winners and Losers from globalisation." And it does seem that The Economist is worried about inequality. More specifically, the Economist seems to be concerned that, given fast-growing inequality, given millions of middle-class workers making no progress, given millions and millions more stuck in poverty while a few at the top make massive gains there is a very real risk that there could be a backlash which attempts to limit the exorbitant pay of CEO's.

The curtains opened at the eagerly awaited World Social Forum meeting yesterday with a vow to fight inequality and social injustice in the world.