Those who are gobbling up all the gains in our economy, all the increases in the Gross Domestic Product, and their mouthpieces in the media will come up with any possible excuse they can for the vast income and wealth inequality in America.
One of their most popular excuses is that education isn’t keeping up, that now people must have more education to get better paying jobs.
The radical right-wing say education is the problem with a straight face while they de-fund public education, split k-12 education into private schools, charter schools, and the least fortunate public schools, which most American children attend.
Not only have radical right-wing Republicans done all they can to split education into a parental income determined system, but they’ve also done all they can to make higher education unaffordable for working class and poor kids.
Yet, education doesn’t explain the growing gap in our economy.
Nobel laureate, Princeton professor, and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman wrote,
"As for wages and salaries, never mind college degrees — all the big gains are going to a tiny group of individuals holding strategic positions in corporate suites or astride the crossroads of finance. Rising inequality isn’t about who has the knowledge; it’s about who has the power. Now, there’s a lot we could do to redress this inequality of power. We could levy higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy, and invest the proceeds in programs that help working families. We could raise the minimum wage and make it easier for workers to organize. It’s not hard to imagine a truly serious effort to make America less unequal."
But that effort must begin with our struggle to restore democracy, fight to organize, and VOTE.