Are the 1% a threat to humanity?
- Dan Connors
- Jan 27
- 5 min read
"Get your fucking ass up and work." Kim Khardassian, on lazy women who might not have grown up in wealth and reality tv.
"Stop buying avocado toast and you'll be able to afford buying a house," popular meme ridiculing baby boomers
"My father gave me a small loan of a million dollars." Donald Trump
Does income and wealth inequality make that much of a difference in life? There can be no denying that the past fifty years have greatly expanded the gap between the ultra-rich 1% and the vast majority of Americans in the bottom 90%. The most recent figures I've seen have the top 1% owning over 30% of all the wealth and the bottom 50% having just 1 or 2% They also own most of the stock in the stock market, which so far keeps going up and making them more and more wealthy.
The bottom majority of Americans have seen their wages lose value once adjusted for inflation. Things that were once taken for granted by the middle-class- home ownership, healthcare, and a good education are getting more and more out of reach. Yet we've seen little sign of a revolt by the peasants- they seem to be okay with their lot and in survival mode. How can this be, and how much worse can this get?
One could argue that inequality is inescapable, and that envy is misplaced. Those who are doing well may be doing so because they somehow deserve it, and by following their lead, many of us can enjoy the same prosperity as well. This is the basic Horatio Alger argument that worked in the 20th century, but seems out of date today. One could also argue that life is unfair, and was never meant to be fair, so tough shit if you're poor. Go start your own company if you want, but life doesn't owe you anything, and neither do your neighbors.
But my question today is how is this huge rise in inequality hurting everybody, even those at the top? We've been told for decades that as the rich get richer, all boats rise and everybody does better. But the opposite seems to be happening today. The rich are getting much richer, and the middle class is slipping into despair.
My main concern beyond the rank unfairness is that those who are now guiding us into the future have no conception of what's happening down here in our reality. They are blissfully out of touch. As I wrote about reviewing the Velvet Rope Economy book, the rich are inhabiting an entirely different world than the rest of us.
They live in walled off neighborhoods, fly private airplanes, socialize with only other rich people, and spend most of their time chasing money, power and attention. They vacation in posh resorts where their every need is catered to, and no one ever dares contradicts or challenges them. They know nothing about the cost of living, climate change, healthcare challenges, or what simple people like to do for fun.
Numerous psychological studies have shown that as wealth and status increases, empathy and compassion go down. This isn't because the rich are innately evil, it's because human nature supports empathy when we need others to survive, (which has been historically the case). Once humans figure out that maybe they don't need others at all, they see them as either competitors to be vanquished or leeches to be scraped away.
This opens up a profound philosophical question- are people innately selfish and only cooperate when they have to? Or are people naturally kind and empathetic and only the worst of us get thrown off balance by greed and materialism? The survival instinct is a strong one, and sometimes survival is a lone experience. But usually it requires a village, and that's the only way that humans have evolved into great civilizations. Having a small group of wealthy titans thinking that they alone can control destiny seems like suicide to me.
Before going on, watch this brief Ted Talk about one famous study.
If you didn't watch that video, it's okay because here's a quick summary:
Randomized wealth from rigged experiments make people start behaving like assholes.
Rich people start feeling entitled to their privilege and are more likely to lie, steal and break rules to keep it.
The American Dream is dead unless we do something about this.
There was a fascinating show that ran for 11 seasons starting in 2010 called Undercover Boss. In it, a CEO would work incognito for his own company and learn first-hand about the issues and struggles the front line workers have to deal with. This is what all management types should do to increase empathy and perspective, because it gives them valuable information about what their clients and employees are dealing with. Charts and reports can only tell so much. Sometimes you have to see it for yourself.
Typically at the end of every show the CEO takes off their disguise and vows to make changes to improve things. Because this was on national television, I'm not sure how much you can trust all of it, but it seemed genuine. Most reality shows are at least somewhat staged and exaggerated to make them more dramatic. Unfortunately, most CEO's are evaluated by boards of directors and shareholders on profits alone, and empathy doesn't fit into that equation too often. This is where unions are more effective.
Take the main issue of the 21st century- climate change. As carbon accumulates, some areas of the earth will likely become unlivable and unfarmable. Those in the 1%, or .01% are the ones controlling most of the decision making, and they believe they will do just fine if the climate warms another 1 or 2 degrees Centigrade. The poor people who live in hotter areas without access to clean water or air conditioning will suffer the most. This is where empathy would have helped.
The more inequality rises, and the further and further insulated the 1% get, the harder it will be to solve ANY global problems. If they can buy their way out of unpleasantness, they will. Some have already built underground bunkers to hide out in in case the worst happens.
Somehow, the billionaire class must be made to realize the peril that they and all the rest of us are in. (And those who made their billions from fossil fuels will be the hardest to convince.)
One piece of history that gives me hope is the story of the Great Stink in London in 1858. That summer a toxic stew of sewage caused the River Thames to smell up the entire city. Parliament was near the river and had to go to great lengths to try to overcome the stench. By the end of the summer the unpleasantness led to great strides in passing laws to construct a new sewer system that eventually fixed the problem.
If only there was some way to make the billionaires understand the issues that affect all of us little people. Right now, they have NO idea. NONE. They're more concerned about their yachts, appearance, trusts, and vacation homes. In order to make any real progress on the issues of the day, it's going to be up to the 90% to fix things. We need to find some way to get past the BS fake scapegoats that the 1% keep tossing in to divide us (race, religion, gender) and get serious about finding solutions.
Look at that graph at the top of this post again. The top 1% share (over $800,000 per year) of income was at 26.5% as of 2023. The last time it peaked was in 1928 before the Great Depression. That downturn lasted decades and brought misery worldwide. Are we on a path for another, worse depression? If the 1% keeps growing more aloof and entitled, almost certainly.
Only when the 1% can see that we're serious will they respect and listen to us. By popping their golden bubble we can save the entire 100%.
Watch shows like this before you complain about how lazy and unreliable the poor are.
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