...Wealth and Power in the US EDWIN SMITH Pol 443 January 6, 2015 KYLE HAGENBURGER Wealth and Power in the US Wealth and Power in the US To whom it may concern: This letter is to inform the public of how health care relates to the distribution and concentration of wealth in the U.S. and support the need to redistribute wealth in America. Wealth refers to the value of everything that a individual and family owns minus all its debts. Most of economists define wealth as marketable assets such as stocks bonds and real estate. In marketable securities, consumer durables like cars are not included because they are not readily converted into cash (Domhoff 2011). Power refers to the ability of controlling the behaviors of others, even against their will. Groups and individuals who have power are able to use it to increase their own interest. It is not necessary that individuals take these benefits at the cost of society. In the Unites States, social class is an arguable issue because there is a disagreement on its models and its existence in the country. Three class model that includes the rich, the middle class and the poor as believed by Americans. Among all the major economies, distribution of income in the United States is most unequal (Domhoff 2010)). The poverty level in the U.S. was $16,036 in 1997 for a family size of four. As with earnings difference, the poverty pace vary significantly between cultural groups. Difference in poverty and earnings has a chief...
Words: 838 - Pages: 4
... The conflict theory focuses on the negative aspects of our changing society. This Theory rests on the premises that the history of society of class struggles, and over Powered with wealth and power, throughout this paper I will explain my personal View of sociology and provide evidence of the conflict theory, which will lead to The reasons for choosing this theory. Karl Marx (1818-1883) argued that it is tension and conflict that motivates us to Think and act differently (Vissing, Y. 2011). My personal view of this theory is that it Argues that the competition of individuals and groups for wealth and power is Fundamental process shaping social structure. There are so many people that are Overthrown with wealth and power until they forget the society and what it faces. Our economy is suffering with no help from those with all the power, rather than Working together to solve the problem, they are fighting against one another, our Attitudes and behavior plays a great deal in the way we think and look at society, Such as, what we wear, eats, and lives, all based on gender, race, religion, violence, Group behavior and personality. It is evident that a conflict is always concerned with a Distribution of power. An exertion of power is prerequisite to the retention of a share in the determination of Future relations---as well as for the acquiring or retaining of other...
Words: 926 - Pages: 4
...be described also as an imbalance, and with such an imbalance in terms of income, wealth, and class prosperity comes income inequality. Income inequality or economic inequality can be described as the imbalance between income of individuals or household within a country or class. When income inequality is brought up or mentioned, most people think about it in regards to the impoverished class and the ultra rich 1% but this is not the case. In a world that is becoming more and more integrated, economic inequality between the middle class and the top 1% is becoming much more relevant and much more of a problem that needs to be addressed. We live in a...
Words: 1731 - Pages: 7
...The Issue of Income Equality in the US By SOC 100: Intro to Sociology April 29, 2012 A major social problem in America today is its inequality of the distribution of income. "Income inequality refers to the gap between the rich and the poor. The United States has the most unequal income distribution in the industrialized world, and it is growing at a faster rate than any other industrialized country" Bernard Sanders (1997). What's really going on with the economy? - Unequal distribution of wealth and income. [ONLINE] Available at: www.usatoday.com. [Last Accessed 04/27/2012]. Society defines this social issue as the disparity between the few at the very top of the income ladder, and the many at the bottom. Recently, the Occupy Movement has defined this problem has fight between the 1% and the 99%. The social classes that are most impacted by this disparity pretty much cover the spectrum as we are all affected. The most latent effects are probably found in the poor, in single-mothers, and in the minority classes. Those are the classes that have the least amount of economic and social power at the onset. A persons clothing, housing and educational opportunities usually depend on their class, but that is a direct reflection of their income. A person does not gain any class or power without their income being taken into consideration. The only problem is, is that there is also class inequality, which further prohibits people to earn an equal...
Words: 1166 - Pages: 5
...Behind the dark Mask Thesis Statement: Through Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, and Nick Garaway, Fitzgerald shows us that by living life behind a mask you are simply lying to yourself and will end up with a sad empty existence. Daisy in turn, is a woman who left what she really loved due to the fear of not having the wealth and stability that she needed in her life. She chooses money over love. Major point: Jay Gatsby is obsessed with getting power wealth and the love of his life. Evidence: He is constantly throwing lavish parties and events to awe society into accepting him for something he is not. Elaboration: Gatsby has a desire to have it all in life. Money, Power and Daisy and he does not seem to care at what cost he obtains his wishes. We can see his true self when he is reunited with Daisy. Major Point: Daisy has a strong desire to have money and she hides her feeling for Gatsby as she refused to leave her lifestyle. Evidence: Even though Daisy loved Gatsby, her greed does not allow her to follow her heart. Instead she married Tom who offered the status that she needed. Elaboration: Daisy is cheated on and does not feel loved by Tom, but this does not convince her to leave her situation, even when Gatsby presents himself and asks her to tell Tom she loves him, she refuses to do so after learning of Gatsby’s ill gotten ways of obtaining his wealth. Major Point: Nick Garraway does not reveal anything of himself; he spends the entire story focusing on the life...
Words: 654 - Pages: 3
...Why The US Became An Imperialist Power It can certainly be argued that the turn to imperialism by the United States in the late nineteenth century was of a piece with expansionist policy that dated back to the founding of the nation. Many of the justifications were similar, including a civilizing mission, expanding economic opportunities, competition with foreign powers, and others. Additionally, the anxieties that resulted from the closing of the frontier (most famously expressed in Frederick Jackson Turner's 1893 essay The Significance of the Frontier in American History) are often cited as driving forces for continued expansion as a way of maintaining American vitality in a modern world. Yet imperialism marked a major departure from previous US policy. For more than a century, political leaders had emphasized American isolation from the problems of the world. By mid-century, however, the desire for new markets for United States manufactured goods had resulted in increasing involvement in foreign affairs. The United States became an imperialist power for reasons of wealth, land, and power in the late eighteenth century. Though ideologically convincing, the imperialist policies that the US followed proved to be unsuccessful in a number of instances. From 1890 to about 1911, many Americans held the strongest of reservation either in favor or against United States imperialism. Thus, the debate over imperialism is split into two categories: Imperialists and anti-imperialists...
Words: 1430 - Pages: 6
...William Domhoff provides us with a revealing look at class domination. He defines social and economic class status; the corporate world and it`s power and the intertwining between the corporate community and the upper class. To gain insight how one class can dominate the other we must define the terms social class and power. “They (social scientists) begin with a crucial analytical distinction between economic classes, which consist of people who have a common position in the economic system, such as ‘business owners’ or ‘employees’ and social classes, which consist of people who interact with each other, develop in-group social organizations, and share a common lifestyle” (Domhoff, 4). According to the author the most dominate social class in America is the upper class. This group can be defined as less than one percent of the population yet owns 34.3 percent of all marketable assets. As a group this class is very private, elite and secretive. They attend selected schools; they are members of private clubs and possess the most wealth in America. The upper class consists of networks which are created through social circles, alumni groups and club memberships. “This network-based way of thinking about a social class as a duality of persons and groups fits well with earlier definitions of social class” (Domhoff, 6). This group`s networks are the basis for shared interests. In an ideal world no class or group has power over another. For...
Words: 1245 - Pages: 5
...Wealth distribution in the United States Economy Has the United States come out of the recession of the late 2000’s as a whole, or has only the top one percent been growing richer? Very often at college, work, or even the local bar everyone is talking about the shrinking middle class. “Rich get richer poor get poorer”. Is this really true, or are people just complaining? Can the financial strength of the top one percent be destroying the economy of the United States? Does the wealthy have more money and want more of it, crushing the world’s largest economy? The question, “Does income inequality hurt economic growth” must be asked. In the years after “The Great Recession” of the late 2000’s the United States has had a small steady...
Words: 1648 - Pages: 7
...wonder what the point of money is anymore. The way that wealth has affected the world is rather insane, and has shown that us as people still want wealth for many different reasons(living, social class, etc.), and that civilization has not yet abandoned the pairing of wealth and power. If someone doesn’t have a lot of money they will take steal, and even kill for it, and sadly, if someone already has a lot of money, they will do the same to get even more. In The Great Gatsby, money establishes different social classes...
Words: 447 - Pages: 2
...though the Occupy Wall Street Movement has been all over the news I did not truly understand the stance of it, nor did I really get involved with it. While doing research for this paper I was able to get a better understanding of the basis of the movement as well as the facts pertaining to it. The movement started on Wall Street but has spread across the US. The basis of the movement focuses on social & economic inequality, greed, corruption and the influence of corporations on the US government, primarily from the financial sectors of businesses. The main slogan of Occupy Wall Street (OWS) is we are the 99%, which addresses the growing income inequality and wealth distribution in the US between the wealthiest 1% and the rest of the population. Huffington Post reporter, Paul Taylor said the slogan is "arguably the most successful slogan since 'Hell no, we won't go,'" of Vietnam war era, and that the majority of Democrats, independents and Republicans see the income gap as causing social friction The initial basis of the movement was to protest the global crisis of monetary insolvency, and the increasing disparity of wealth. Without offices, paid staff, or a bank account, Occupy Wall Street quickly spread beyond New York. People gathered in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Portland, Atlanta, San Diego, and hundreds of other cities around the United States and claimed the right of we the people to create a world that works for the 99%. In a matter of weeks, the occupations and protests...
Words: 1537 - Pages: 7
...Manifesto they were the first to give a thorough and scientific analysis of the laws and workings of capitalist society: why it results in the polarization of wealth and how it can be overthrown. In the last few years their ideas have been regaining popularity. At the end of 1999 Marx was voted the greatest thinker of the millennium in a BBC online poll. It is the economic crisis of capitalism internationally that has forced many to reassess their view of Marx. Capitalism is a cyclical system: crises can be caused by a number of factors, such as financial crashes or political unrest. Marx recognized that capitalism, despite all its abuses, played an important role in developing the productive forces and the world market. It was an advance from the feudal societies that preceded it. Today, capitalism has developed the world market and the wealth, science and technology have laid the foundations for a socialist society. Under capitalism, wealth and power have always been concentrated in the hands of the capitalists. And the development of technology is driven by the need for profit. The anarchy of the capitalist market always results in increasing wealth and power for a few but poverty for the many. Today the capitalists are a far wealthier and a far smaller class than they were in Marx's time. In the last 50 years the wealth gap between the richest 20% of humanity and the poorest 20% doubled. Individual multinational companies have become richer than entire countries. The world's...
Words: 1670 - Pages: 7
...Wealth & Power in America Name Institution Wealth & Power in America 1. In your opinion, who has political power in the United States? Who lacks it? Why? The congress has the political power in the United States. This is because the congress is entitled to writing the laws. The government and the president do not have the political power in U.S. The president is only entitled to signing the laws made by the congress. The Supreme Court, on the other hand, only decides whether the made laws are constitutional or not (Barret, Stokholm, & Burke, 2001). The wealth and the rich also have immense political power in U.S. 2. What is your opinion of the "American Dream" and the idea that anyone can work hard and succeed? “American Dream” refers to a concept that argues that people can lead happy and successful lives if they embrace the need to work hard. It also argues that freedom, meaningful relationships, and a person’s fulfillment can be achieved if a person works hard. However, in my opinion, not all people can achieve the goal of this dream. This is attributed to the society-structure of the United States. People live in varying social classes, ethnicity, and religion. This different structure of the American society hinders the achievement of this dream (Barret et al., 2001). Some people face a lot of discrimination in the workplaces. Discrimination, in most of these workplaces, is based on one’s color and background ethnicity. Such people are denied job opportunities...
Words: 1012 - Pages: 5
...devil. Tom and his wife are very unhappy together. Greed is an intense desire for money or power. Tom and his wife try to make deals with the devil where they will get both. This then leads them to a not so happy ending that they expected. Only caring about wealth can leave someone with less than what they started with. Toms wife's worry for wealth leads her to search for the devil and find her death. After realizing his wife's missing, Tom goes to the woods to find body parts in her apron. For example, “Tom seized the check apron, but woeful sigh! Found nothing but a heart and liver tied in it” (pg 20). Tom’s finding the body parts...
Words: 471 - Pages: 2
...median income (Bassis, 1991:216). I. Basic Definitions A. Life Chances Life chances refer to one's access to resources. Life chances can refer to one's ability to get food and shelter. It also refers to access to social institution such as health care, education, the government, and the law (to mention a few). Social class affects one's life chances across a broad spectrum of social phenomenon from health care, to educational attainment, to participation in the political process, to contact with the criminal justice system. B. What is Social Stratification? Social stratification refers to the division of a society into layers (or strata) whose occupants have unequal access to social opportunities and rewards. People in the top strata enjoy power, prosperity, and prestige that are not available to other members of society; people in the bottom strata endure penalties that other members of society escape. In a stratified society, inequality is part of the social structure and passes from one generation to the next. C. What is a Class? People who occupy the same layer of the socioeconomic hierarchy are known as a social...
Words: 5484 - Pages: 22
...tells the emotional life of William Wordsworth as it reflects his alienation, memory, and healing. Alienation is a terrible feeling of isolation which is healed by solitude or reflection. Solitude allows for floods of memories to remind us of our reason for living. Solitude is our saving grace which is essential for reflection, a time in which we discover things about our past which were previously unknown. Being in a state of solitude brings many memories from our past to the stage, allowing us to celebrate the joys of past experiences once more. Memory is an extremely powerful force which defines us and creates our identity, thus giving us a reason to live. Through a process of solitude and reflection the much needed power of healing can be achieved. Healing can be found in reflection on memories and in the beauty of nature. Nature allows the feelings of alienation and isolation to escape our tranquil minds and therefore rejoining us with society. Wordsworth was a poet of nature and his struggles made him develop a deep connection with the world around him. Healing from the sufferings of the world can be found in reflection, memories, and nature. Alienation, a terrible feeling of isolation, makes people aloof with the world and separates us from the harshness of society. Sometimes alienation is necessary because being separated from the pressures of the world allows for reflection which leads to solitude. Alienation evokes loneliness and depression which leads those who suffer...
Words: 1175 - Pages: 5
