Whose Op-Ed Is That In Today’s Republic?

Posted by Bob Lord

Well, okay, it might be the slowest news day of the year, but still…

I had titled this piece "The Trillion Dollar Club." The AZ Republic picked it up, but changed the title to Absurd Inequity Is Threatening U.S.

I kind of liked my title better, but they left the rest of the piece alone, which is great. Here are the first few paragraphs:

By Bob Lord

Special for The Republic

Have you ever tried visualizing America’s increasing concentration of wealth?

Well, try this: Imagine the entire population lined up in order of wealth, measured by net worth. Bill Gates, the wealthiest American, would stand at the front of the line, and the poorest American at the back.

Now, imagine a gate at the front of the line. Finally, imagine that Americans walk through the gate, one by one, starting with Microsoft’s billionaire founder, until the collective wealth of those who have passed through totals $1 trillion.

How many people belong to this trillion-dollar club?

Right now, according to the latest Forbes magazine calculations, just 51 Americans.

If you have a few, click through here to read the rest.