Every indexed document

or spending on health and education disproportionately benefits the poor

whose tax burdens were between 33% and 41% and averaged 36%.

has long argued along similar lines. He claimed that his 2010 federal tax bill--income taxes and

a recent report from the OECD suggested that carried interest--the share of

29.2% live in poverty and 46.2% live near the poverty level

and the IMF recently called on lawmakers to

hurting the very people such policies are meant to help (57).

badly designed and implemented efforts to reverse this trend could

a degree of inequality is to be expected in any market

and a degree of inequality is a necessary part of what keeps any

an increase in income inequality has a significant positive relationship with economic

economist Arthur Okun argued that pursuing equality can reduce

and contrary opinions abound. In his influential 1975 book

or the needs of the less affluent may grow so severe as to

such as raising taxes or cutting public spending to avoid a debt crisis. The affluent may

may be essential to a functioning market economy. But beyond

the U.S. economy scored 0.434 on the GINI scale in 2010

income inequality's relationship with the duration of

rapid expansion and those whose growth spurts quickly dissipate. In

observing that the level of inequality may be the key