The welfare of a nation can scarcely be inferred from a measurement of national income as defined by the GDP.
Simon KuznetsRead
Does inequality in the distribution of income increase or decrease in the course of a country's economic growth?
Interpretation
The quote questions whether economic growth leads to greater or lesser income inequality within a country.
Simon Kuznets' quote poses a critical inquiry regarding the relationship between economic growth and income inequality. It suggests that as a country develops economically, the distribution of wealth may either become more unequal or more equal over time. This idea challenges policymakers and economists to consider how growth impacts social structures and equity, emphasizing the need for a deeper understanding of economic policies and their social implications.
In practice
This quote can be used in a discussion about economic policy reforms at a conference.
The welfare of a nation can scarcely be inferred from a measurement of national income as defined by the GDP.
Economics is haunted by more fallacies than any other study known to man
The most insidious thing about trickle-down economics is not the claim that if the rich get richer, everyone is better off. It is the claim made by those who oppose any increase in the minimum wage that if the poor get richer, that will be bad for the economy. This is nonsense.
For most Americans, economic growth is a spectator sport.
I've never been on Wall Street. And I care about Wall Street for one reason and one reason only because what happens on Wall Street matters to Main Street.
Economics, as it is often taught today, portrays us as homo economicus-someone who doesn't vote in presidential elections, doesn't return lost wallets, and doesn't leave tips when dining out of town. Julie Nelson reminds us that most people aren't really like that. She helps point the way to a richer, more descriptive way of thinking about economic life.
The shortage of buyers, which the world is suffering from, is readily understood, not as due to people not wishing to obtain possession of goods, but as people being unwilling to part with something which might earn a regular income in exchange for those goods.
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