"Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%" by Stiglitz

There is a fantastic piece in Vanity Fair by Joseph Stiglitz about wealth distribution in America. Stiglitz won the Nobel prize in Economics in 2001, so the article is not just the semi-coherent rantings of an under-qualified progressive (such as, some argue, myself). He even gives a shout to transportation:

Third, and perhaps most important, a modern economy requires “collective action”—it needs government to invest in infrastructure, education, and technology. The United States and the world have benefited greatly from government-sponsored research that led to the Internet, to advances in public health, and so on. But America has long suffered from an under-investment in infrastructure (look at the condition of our highways and bridges, our railroads and airports), in basic research, and in education at all levels. Further cutbacks in these areas lie ahead.

Further, Stiglitz offers a critique of trickle-(not-very-far-if-at-all)-down economics. Returning to my under-qualified opinion, I think that, exactly as Stiglitz says, it is the need for "collective action" is precisely what makes the decadence and inequality of America especially troublesome.

Full article here, via BoingBoing.