Meanwhile, as we are subjected to the foolish efforts by Democrats to cut pensions for workers, over in Geneva there is some serious talk about the social crisis underway worldwide. Via the meeting of the International Labor Organization, thousands of people from around the world are talking about the grand crisis ripping throughout the globe: the high level of youth unemployment, stagnant levels of world investment in the real economy, the abuse of millions of domestic workers (a handy timing for that topic), marginalization of job-creating small enterprises, and obscene levels of income and wealth concentration.
The full report from the Director General is here, in a variety of languages. It’s even in English–which, if our elected leaders in this country had curious minds or just would read, would provide some interesting facts. And if we had basic economic literacy in the media, people might actually understand how the economy work–and, then, not be seduced by phony cries about a debt and deficit "crisis".
I decided just to extract these points, which are sobering and mind-blowing:
Income inequality has risen in most countries, with incomes at the very top running away from average incomes. In developed economies, income inequalities have translated into wealth inequalities and may undermine social mobility in the coming years – the very basis of the social fabric.
Globally, 80 per cent of the population shares 30 per cent of the world‟s wealth. Between 1990 and 2007, the bottom 20 per cent of the world‟s population raised its share of total income up from 1.5 per cent to 2 per cent.
3.5 billion persons share as much income as 61 million persons in 2007.
In the United States, between 1976 and 2007, the income share of the top 0.1 per cent more than quadrupled from 2.3 per cent to 12.6 per cent.
Poverty (at US$1.25 a day) is declining, but very slowly to 1.4 billion people in 2005 from 1.8 billion in 1990; at this rate it would take another 88 years to achieve a world without extreme poverty.
To halve poverty rates by 2015 relative to 1990 (Millennium Development Goal 1) least developed countries (LDCs) would need to double the growth of productive employment (providing income above the poverty threshold) to 7.1 per cent from the current 3 per cent.
Gender pay differences are narrowing, extremely slowly; at the current rate another 75 years will be needed to bridge this gap.
Some 75–80 per cent of the world‟s population has no access to basic social protection.
The report is really worth reading to capture the enormity of the crisis. And it also makes one’s head hurt.
