Laid-off Older Workers Have Bleak Outlook

People who are 55 years or older and are unemployed spend an average of 54.1 weeks in unemployment.  One of these workers, Tom Magnone of Liberty Township, Ohio said he has filed applications for 920 different jobs.  Sometimes workers have to rely on temporary work when possible to make ends meet.  Compared to younger workers, older ones more often spent half of a year in unemployment even before the economic downturn.  Therefore, age discrimination has been a problem.  This helps widen income inequality as jobless older workers cannot make ends meet and younger workers often get paid less than older employed workers.  Meanwhile, CEOs and the upper tenth of the Top 1% continue to take home record paychecks.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/09/jobs-report-unemployment-older-workers_n_1333699.html

Top 1%'s Share of 2010 Income Gains Amount to 93% in U.S.

In 2010, the first year of recovery following the painful job-destroying recession of 2007-2009, the top 1% received 93% of all U.S. income gains during the year.  Which means the bottom 99% of the population is left to fight over the remaining seven percent.  The decline of unions has helped spur the decline, as well as tax policy and stock gains by the rich.  Not suprisingly, more Americans are falling into poverty and cannot even afford to eat.  It is very clear that income inequality caused the recession and correcting it is the only way towards recovery. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/05/1-percent-income-inequality_n_1321008.html

Wealthiest More Likely to Lie, Cheat, & Steal (for 2/29/12)

High-income people lie and cheat more often, compared to those of average income or wealth, according to a recent study.  The wealthy also cut off other drivers on the road and believe in breaking the rules while working.  Greed is one thing that drives the wealthy to exhibit these various socially unacceptable behaviors that may ultimately lead to corruption which angers Americans of average or below-average income.  When the wealthy amass so much riches that they are in th top 1%, they often fail to see how their actions affect others.  This type of attitude may affect how they conduct interviews with potential employees, to whom they withhold important information regarding the positions they seek.  In the workplace, they are more likely to justify stealing money, bribery, and ripping off customers.  When extremely wealthy individuals are heavily involved in philanthropy, it can make one wonder if they are merely using it as a cover for these anti-social behaviors.  The recent reports of the wealth divide between Congressional members and their constituents indicated that insider trading is surely going on among members of Congress.  Constituents are left to wonder if their Congressional Representative or Senator believes it is all right to lie, cheat, and steal.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/02/27/1068884/-The-1-more-likely-to-lie-cheat-and-steal-Science-says-so-?via=spotlight

For-Profit College Heads at Luxurious Retreat

Around 60 executives from for-profit schools across the nation just attended a lxurious retreat at Lake Tahoe resort in California. For a decade, they have spent millions lobbying Congress to stop regulations aimed at their industry. These proposed laws seek to punish schools that saddle students with loans they cannot pay back. One of this industry's chief lobbyists trying to shelter this industry from new regulations is former Senate Majority leader Trent Lott, who attended the retreat as a noted guest and gave them a presentation on legislative updates. These schools help worsen income inequality as the executives make lavish salaries with luxurious perks like this while students get loans they often cannot repay and no guarantee of a job after they earn their degrees. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/17/for-profit-college-chiefs-lake-tahoe_n_1283331.html

Sheldon Adelson's Income: $3.3 Million Per HOUR (for 2/9/12)

The biggest contributor to Newt Gingrich's campaign, Sheldon Adelson, recently gave $5 million to a Gingrich Super PAC. This helped Gingrich to an unexpected GOP primary win over Mitt Romney in South Carolina. Adelson's income last year was $7 billion. This wealth came from his ownership of Sands Corporation, a big casino and resort operator based in Las Vegas. This shows the staggering income inequality that exists in America. If he worked just 40 hours per week, his hourly wage rate would be $3.3 million per hour. He met with Gingrich for several hours at The Venetian earlier this month. Adelson earned much of this money from stock gains in his casinos and resorts in Asia, particularly China. He would also be open to supporting other GOP candidates such as Mitt Romney. Last year, the median American household earned $49,455, an hourly rate of $23.77 on 40 hours weekly. This comes out to a rate of almost 140,000 times to one. This inequality and concentration of wealth fuels social unrest and understandable class envy. Even if he kept $1 billion of income for himself last year, he could give one million full-time workers in Sands' hometown of Las Vegas an hourly wage increase of $2.80 per hour. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/08/newt-gingrich-sheldon-adelson-income_n_1263249.html

Congress Members' Growing Wealth Separates Them From Constituents (for 12/26/11)

The average Congressional Representative's net worth in 1984 was $280,000. In 2009, it was $725,000. The average American's net worth went from $20,600 to $20,500 over that time. The inflation-adjusted cost of a winning campaign for a House Representative seat is now $1.4 million, four times what it was in 1976. Having great wealth often influences how come members of Congress vote on bills. The wealthiest members foten vote to protect the wealth of the very wealthy. http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/growing-wealth-widens-distance-between-lawmakers-and-constituents/2011/12/05/gIQAR7D6IP_story.html

If Top 1% Had Not Ripped Off Trillions, You Would Be Making Thousands More Now (for 12/6/11)

In 1947, the wealthiest 1% of Americans received almost 12% of national income. This figure fell to 10.7% by 1967. The wealthiest 1%'s share of America's income never topped 12.8% from 1949 to 1979, and stood at 10% when Americans voted Ronald Reagan President of the U.S. in 1980. This rose to 15.5% when he finished his term in Office and rose to 21.5% when George W. Bush became President in 2001. It rose further to 23.5% in 2007. This means the bottom 99% of Americans have seen their share of America's economic output fall by over 10%. Annually, this equals $1 trillion in extra income for the wealthiest Americans. Since 1980, if trends based on productivity for the middle class held form to today, they would be making an average of $12,500 more per year.
http://www.alternet.org/story/152621/if_top_1_hadn't_ripped_off_trillions,_you'd_likely_be_making_thousands_of_dollars_