The Reagan Revolution: Seems that Incomes were too damn equal and Congressmen too damn sane

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

This is a fun chart, not a definitive word of God statement of anything. (No wagering!)

From a work called "Polarized America: The Dance of Ideology and Unequal Riches" that correlates income inequality and political polarization. (Not just party totals, but looking at the extremity and difference of views. For instance, they say the current congress is the most polarized since reconstruction since there are almost no moderate Republicans left in office.)

Notice that (according to this, at least) when Reagan took office income inequality was at it's lowest and the political spectrum fairly compressed. No wonder we needed a Reagan revolution! Won't someone think of the rich?

Also striking: the low level of polarization during the very intense 1960s and 1970s. This paper could have been called "WINGNUTS ARE A LUXURY" because it looks like when times are tough people have less patience in extremism.

And also striking: polarization leads inequality. Correlation is not causation, but one would expect that sort of lag if equality shifts were largely attributable to legislation.

Theory: I suspect a line labeled "religion in public life" would track these other two lines pretty darn well.

http://polarizedamerica.com/#POLITICALPOLARIZATION

[depakid]

1. Krugman has discussed (referenced) the phenomena several times as well

America the Polarized

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/04/opinion/04KRUG.html

Krugman: Income Inequality Pricks 'Conscience'

http://www.npr.org/rss/

(a good listen).

Part and parcel to America's trend toward 3rd world status....

[JayMusgrove]

2. I guess I have to look at the whole article... it's a bit complex, and

there are OTHER graphs in the article that are simpler to understand than this one, IMO.

Basically, as I understand it, the more we have excessively rich, the more polarization we have in our political spectrum. Then there are the Republican/Democratic party differences, which, except for the Civil Rights issue before the 1960's and LBJ, were flip-flopped.

[OwnedByFerrets]

3. Its one of many reasons that Thom Hartmann rages

on Reagan. He began our (the middleclass) slide into poverty.

[quaker bill]

4. and some are still confused enough

to believe it was an accident.

[DrToast]

5. That chart has gotten much worse since 1998.

Basically we're right about where we were at the start of the Great Depression. Coincidence? Nope. Strange things happen in an economy when imbalances build up.