Rising wealth tide does not lift all economic boats up

We are the wealthiest country in the history of the world. Total private wealth in 2000 was $44.5 trillion (2014 dollars); in 2014, it was over $81.5 trillion. Average household wealth in 2000 was $422,000. In 2014, it was two thirds of a million dollars ($662,000).

But in 2013, the sum of the debts of the poorest 40 percent of the population was greater than the sum of their assets, so in total the poorest 40 percent of Americans had negative wealth, by an average of negative $10,200 per household.

These facts relate to the following commonly expressed metaphor of conservative "pundits" and policymakers: "A rising tide lifts all boats".

The metaphor would be valid, if you extend it to its logical conclusion: "A rising tide lifts all boats, but if you don't have enough money for a boat, the water goes up your nose. Now, you may be able to swim for a while, but some people will drown. So we need to make sure everyone has a boat."

See www.newenlightenment.us on how we can accomplish this.

We can lift tens of millions of Americans out of poverty and create a true democracy while creating a budget surplus.

Robert Bivona

North Fort Myers

This story was originally published December 27, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Rising wealth tide does not lift all economic boats up ."