„Whoever controls the volume of money in our country is absolute master of all industry and commerce (…) and when you realize that the entire system is very easily controlled, one way or another, by few powerful men at the top, you will not have to be told how periods of inflation and depression originate.“
„Wer die Geldmenge in unserem Land kontrolliert, hat die totale Herrschaft über die ganze Industrie und den Handel (…) und sobald man erkannt hat, dass das gesamte System von wenigen mächtigen Männern an der Spitze auf die eine oder andere Weise sehr leicht kontrolliert werden kann, versteht man auch, wie es zu Phasen von Inflation und Depression kommt.“
~ 20. US Präsident James A. Garfield (1831-1881)
Economics
Oil Prize 2011/02/03
Aktueller Ölpreis in Dollar (WTI) je Barrel
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Kurszeit 11:02:00 Kursdatum 03.02.2011
Eröffnung 91,08
Vortag 90,92
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Tageshoch 91,75
52 W. Tief 67,16 52 W. Hoch 93,00
Aktueller Ölpreis in Dollar (Brent) je Barrel
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Kurszeit 11:04:00 Kursdatum 03.02.2011
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Inequality In America comparing to the Maghreb states
Guest Post:
Inequality In America Is Worse Than In Egypt,
Tunisia Or Yemen
All the protesters in Egypt, Yemen and Tunisia say that inequality is one of the main reasons they’re protesting.
However, the U.S. actually has much greater inequality than in any of those countries.
Specifically, the “Gini Coefficient” – the figure economists use to measure inequality – is higher in the U.S.
Gini Coefficients are like golf handicap – the lower the score, the better (i.e. the more equality).
According to the CIA World Fact Book, the U.S. is ranked as the 42nd most unequal country in the world, with a Gini Coefficient of 45.
In contrast:
- Tunisia is ranked the 62nd most unequal country, with a Gini Coefficient of 40.
- Yemen is ranked 76th most unequal, with a Gini Coefficient of 37.7.
- And Egypt is ranked as the 90th most unequal country, with a Gini Coefficient of around34.4.
And inequality in the U.S. has soared in the last couple of years, since the Gini Coefficient was last calculated, so it is undoubtedly currently much higher.
So why are Egyptians rioting, while the Americans are complacent?
Well, Americans – until recently – have been some of the wealthiest
people in the world, with most having plenty of comforts (and/or
entertainment) and more than enough to eat.
But another reason is that – as Dan Ariely of Duke University and Michael I. Norton of Harvard Business School demonstrate – Americans consistently underestimate the amount of inequality in our nation.
As William Alden wrote last September:
Americans vastly underestimate the degree of wealth inequality in America, and we believe that the distribution should be far more equitable than it actually is, according to a new study.
Or, as the study’s authors put it: “All demographic groups — even those not usually associated with wealth redistribution such as Republicans and the wealthy — desired a more equal distribution of wealth than the status quo.”
The report … “Building a Better America — One Wealth Quintile At A Time” by Dan Ariely of Duke University and Michael I. Norton of Harvard Business School … shows that across ideological, economic and gender groups, Americans thought the richest 20 percent of our society controlled about 59 percent of the wealth, while the real number is closer to 84 percent.
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