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MrRodgers -> RE: Yet .....ANOTHER....study regarding the wealthy (8/10/2011 8:28:59 PM)
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ORIGINAL: lockedaway
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ORIGINAL: joether
The rich are different from the rest of us.
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Psychologist and social scientist Dacher Keltner says the rich really are different, and not in a good way: Their life experience makes them less empathetic, less altruistic, and generally more selfish.
In fact, he says, the philosophical battle over economics, taxes, debt ceilings and defaults that are now roiling the stock market is partly rooted in an upper class "ideology of self-interest."
“We have now done 12 separate studies measuring empathy in every way imaginable, social behavior in every way, and some work on compassion and it’s the same story,” he said. “Lower class people just show more empathy, more prosocial behavior, more compassion, no matter how you look at it.”
The article ends with one other curious observation:
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There is one interesting piece of evidence showing that many rich people may not be selfish as much as willfully clueless, and therefore unable to make the cognitive link between need and resources. Last year, research at Duke and Harvard universities showed that regardless of political affiliation or income, Americans tended to think wealth distribution ought to be more equal.
The problem? Rich people wrongly believed it already was.
Typical asshole post. How many universities have YOU founded? How many hospitals? Last I checked, Danny Thomas was famously rich and his children's hospital in Memphis is one of the best in the country. How many libraries did you fund? Carnegie founded a bunch. Have you give as much to AIDS research as Gates? America is the most charitable country in the world....whom do you think has the majority of excess cash in their pockets to be able to donate in the first place?
The lower class has more empathy? I dunno...I haven't seen anyone from Malibu knocking over a liquor store and shooting the clerk in the face lately.
You know what this post is? This is a post by someone who WILL NEVER BE RICH. The person will never be rich because he/she is petty, envious, unambitious, lazy, unfocused.............a myriad of reasons. And that some people have wealth drives this type of person up the fucking wall.
Let me tell you something about the rich. One common trait is that they don't tolerate excuses from non-starters.
As usual...going after the messenger.
The math doesn't lie. there is more wealth in the hands of the top 5% then there is in the bottom 50%. Gee, I wonder how it got that way ? The bottom 1/2 owns 1% of all stock. The top 20% own 85% of all stock which means 80% of the US owns only 15% of all stock. The top 400 people in 2010 made over $133 BILLION total and paid an effective rate of 17% in federal taxes.
Almost ALL capital gains income goes to those who make over $300,000/yr because cap gains is just buying and selling and they are the ones who can afford to 'purchase' a 15% federal tax. The stratospheric wealth and income among the top and their puny tax rate is immoral in this country. The only reason they pay so much in taxes is because they make all of real the money in this country.
They are much more job exporters than they are job creators and are as likely to fire another American as they are to resign their citizenship to do what, well of course...to reduce their taxes. Greed is f u n d a m e n t a l to capitalism...Adam Smith.
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