The Romneys don’t make money; Their money makes money
In 2011, Willard M. Romney and Ann D. Romney reported an adjusted gross income of $13,696,951 via tax returns that were highly skewed - both literally and figuratively. Literally, the...
Research & Commentary
From academics to activists, thoughtful people worldwide are focusing their attention on economic inequality as never before.
The Blitz of Empty Anti-Wall Street Rhetoric
Candidates this fall are taking plenty of pokes at the financial industry's best and brightest. But they could be doing a lot more than poke. They could push to start...
Poverty More than a Matter of Black and White
Far too many Americans still see poverty and poor people through a racial prism that distorts demographic realities — and undermines efforts to narrow income inequality.
The World’s Smallest Shipwreck
Last month Mitt Romney released a somewhat redacted version of his 2011 tax returns. The Romneys reported $13,696,951 in adjusted gross income, not a cent of it earned through work...
Can We Get Tougher on Crime in the Suites?
Federal regulators have actually been cracking down somewhat lately on financial industry fraud. But the power-suited executives responsible for that fraud are still paying no personal price. What should we,...
Washington’s Promiscuous Protectors of Privilege: A Congressional Inequality Report Card
Mitt Romney and I both grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, a wealthy suburb of Detroit. For much of our childhoods, we were represented in Congress by a tireless defender...
A Massive Income Shift from Work to Wealth
A new Cleveland Fed study details the declining share of U.S. national income that comes from the labor we do and the rising share of national income that comes from...
Romney versus realonomy: A peek inside the bubble
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has been roundly criticized for being a wooden, out-of-touch plutocrat who pays a lower effective tax rate than the vast majority of Americans yet believes...
The ‘Self-Made’ Myth: Our Hallucinating Rich
In real life, working hard only takes you so far. Those who go all the way — to grand fortune — typically get a substantial head start. So documents a...
New York Times’ teacher pay comparisons are way out of line
Understandably in these difficult times, much of the reporting on the Chicago teachers' strike has focused on teachers' pay. Most influentially, reporting from The New York Times strongly implies that...