WORLD WEALTH GAP AT
HIGHEST LEVEL IN 20 YEARS

A new study released by one of the world’s most respected international organizations shows that “global inequalities in wealth are at their highest level for 20 years and are growing, ” the BBC reported yesterday.

The global study found “that in most of the 32 developing countries they looked at, the rich had increased their share of national income since the 1990s,” the BBC report said.

Making matters worse is the fact that one reason the gap between the rich and the poor is widening is not necessarily because the rich are getting richer, but because the poor are getting poorer, the study shows. “In a fifth of the countries, the incomes of the poorest had fallen” over that same period since the 90’s, the BBC report said.

The worldwide study was released by Save the Children, an international non-profit organization whose stated goal is to improve the lives of children everywhere.

“The gap (between the wealthy and the poor) has become particularly pronounced among children, and affects their well-being,” the BBC report quoted the charity as saying.

While neither the Save the Children study nor the BBC report regarding it made any mention of world attitudes around the so-called Global Wealth Gap, we will here.

In the United States, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has been taking considerable heat from his political opponents in the Republican Party the past year for wanting to “redistribute wealth.”

The Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney, was famously caught by a hidden microphone at a GOP fundraiser last May talking about the “47% of Americans” who he said were going to “vote for this president no matter what” because they were “not paying taxes” and were dependent upon the government to get by.

This 47%, Mr. Romney went on, were not willing to take responsibility for themselves. Mr. Romney told his campaign contributors, who paid many thousands of dollars per-plate to attend the fundraising dinner (served by white-gloved waiters), that it was not his job to be worried about that 47%.

In the immediate aftermath of the release of the recording, when he was being criticized for his remarks, Mr. Romney stoutly defended what he had said. Only as the criticism grew overwhelming during the weeks that followed, threatening to derail his candidacy for his nation’s highest office, did Mr. Romney retract his remarks, repudiating them in full. “I was completely wrong,” he allowed.

Startling, however, was the number of Americans who appeared to agree with his earlier-stated views. Public opinion surveys showed a remarkable number of members of his own Republican Party who supported his ideas. Presumably, after Mr. Romney repudiated his own statements, those Republicans repudiated theirs.

Yet this is only the latest in a decades-long opinion trend — not only in America, but around the world — that now begs the question: Do people holding great, or even modest, wealth really care about the people holding none? Further, and perhaps more to the point, should they?

Is it at some level the responsibility of those who “have” to be worried about (much less actually take care of) those who “have not”?

This, of course, is not a small social issue; not an insignificant question. Human societies from the beginning of civilization have had to face it.

Is it okay for such societies to “take from the rich and give to the poor” through taxes, levies, or by whatever legal means?

Conversations with God is very clear on this subject. It says that in highly evolved societies of this future there will be no taxes, levies, or limitations on a person’s income whatsoever. It also says this would be so because in such societies people would voluntarily give a generous percentage of their income to a global fund for the poor.

CWG also suggests that members of such societies would voluntarily place on themselves an upper limit on income…say, $25 million a year, as simply an example…and that everything above that amount would be freely sent to a global fund to help those living in poverty, but with the stipulation that those contributing the funds could specifically direct their use to the programs and charities of their choice — meaning they would still be in charge of where their money went.

Such ideas are utopian, to be sure, but they do raise a continually nagging question: How much is ‘enough’? And, since the wealthy worked to produce their wealth (presumably), should they be required, even by social pressure, to share it with the less fortunate (or with, as Mr. Romney said in his now admittedly mistaken remarks, the 47% of people who will never “take responsibility for themselves”)?

The question, of course, presumes an equality of opportunity for the poor to themselves become rich — an assumption that may or may not reflect the true state of the global marketplace.

And your thoughts?

Comments

16 responses to “WORLD WEALTH GAP AT
HIGHEST LEVEL IN 20 YEARS”

  1. Michael L Avatar
    Michael L

    Love the idea that one side is more giving then another.

    “Yet this is only the latest in a decades-long opinion trend — not only in America, but around the world — that now begs the question: Do people holding great, or even modest, wealth really care about the people holding none? Further, and perhaps more to the point, should they?”

    Well the big Government types believe that government will give enough to the poor so they individually don’t have to. As we watch Vice president Biden donate $300. only.

    On the other side giving away their wealth is a belief of charity that they have.
    Individually. And they do this mostly magnanimously.

    Since in CWG there is no shoulding, force is never the answer.

    Two sides of the problem, individuals give to who they relate to and Governments give to who gets them elected.

    One would give relatively more inclusively and the other very specifically.

    I believe each if educated to the worlds plight would take more responsibility for it. That has to start a young age.
    And of course the idea that there is not enough would have to change.
    And to freely give to another is giving to our selves(We Are All One) as abundance flows through us all to us all.

    I believe I see the awareness coming, when less force is going to be used to give our abundance and our hearts will open more and realize Who We Really Are.

  2. mewabe Avatar
    mewabe

    There would be a lot less poor people in the first place if the world economic systems where geared towards creating sustainable work for all, rather than towards exploitation by predatory elements.

    Globalization has created this mess, destroying the middle class in North America and Europe and lowering these nations’ standard of living while supposedly raising the standard of living of nations like China and India…the ugly truth is that under cover of this evening out of the world economies the only people who have benefiting are the very rich, whether in China or in America, while the rest have become poor, the new peons.

    Those who believe in conspiracy theories have a point: can the governments of the world, all the politicians, the world banks, the multinational corporations, all those who have destroyed the economies of North America and Europe really be this stupid? Especially since they all have gotten so much richer in the process, is it all a mistake on their part, and them getting richer just a miraculous coincidence? Or was it all carefully planned?

    The answer seems obvious to me, but then perhaps I have a bad case of paranoia (or distrust of government and the elite).

  3. Nanuchka Zoranovich Avatar
    Nanuchka Zoranovich

    The simple answer to your question is ‘Yes, there are people other than the poor who actually care that 90% of the world’s wealth is in the hands of 1% of the population.
    The groups I work with are Pillai Center and the Tripura Foundation. Our focus is to shift Humanity’s collective consciousness from poverty into wealth, then back that up with practical action. As Einstein said, you can’t solve a problem with the same brain that created the problem. We have to change the brains and energies of the poor first.
    Looking at studies of lottery winners illustrates the truth of this. Regardless of the amount of money won, lottery winners are back at their old income level within 2 to 5 years.
    If you’d like to learn about our projects, visit Pillaicenters.com and tripurafoundation.org. There are things that can be done right now to turn this situation around, so if you care enough to invest some of your time in creating change, start today! All you need is time and the will to take action.

  4. Erin/IAm Avatar
    Erin/IAm

    I whole-heartedly believe in do-nations. That when a specific ‘issue’ is presented to “The People”, the majority will-fully give to contribute to solution & accomplishment…income echelon has not been a barrier to this concept…Ever.

    I also have noted that taxing has Never worked to promote capability of this ideal.

    I understand that there are many who are frustrated by leader factions appropriating livelihoods. It was a try, which is proving dysfunctional. But what do we ‘do’ now that half of our kind is drugged with mind-alterers, kept in hopeless states, still multiplying nonetheless, & ‘burdening’ the other half?

    I see that to have come to these states, ‘somebodies’ were not doing their ‘jobs’…Our chosen policies of leaderships led to this, our lack of intelligent consumerism led to this, our arrogant concepts of ‘humanity’ led to this. Sooo, there’s half the battle won, yes? Change the policies to higher-thinking…give knowledge back to J.Q. Public thru prioritizing educational options…and for humanity’s sake, get off that high horse we’ve been riding!

    In re-gripping our personal responsibilities, many will pass on…this is Nature’s sorting out process, and She does a heavenuva job when allowed. Up to this point, we have thwarted this process at every chance…these states of us now are merely consequences, and nothing more. And to See is to opt the Be, yes?

    I suggest an Alliance of sorts…that runs along side the present stands. Not as an ‘against’ but as ‘another choice’. Businesses within that Alliance would be created of higher-thinking…operated by the employees, but all standards of operation as One. Education & craftsmanship would be Job One for the same One…Using those businesses to prosper in the All of it…People raising up people (& by ‘people’ I don’t mean just human kind). The objective would be to example & prove results of higher-thinking & management of this realm we are part of. It would not take long for a grander majority to emerge from this ‘movement’, as they are seeking it, hoping for it, ready & willing to participate in it…world-wide. In short time, would the ‘old’ become ‘new’ all by itself…a Natural process.

    idk…This is simply a vision…as yet. I believe in a do-nation…no matter how large the project, donations have proved themselves as viable means…I know us to be grander than what is…I have hope in higher-thinking.

    Good Journey!:)

  5. Ruchir Garg Avatar
    Ruchir Garg

    I see life as continuously happening by trial and error. When mass consciousness is to be exploitative – as it most definitely is now – eventually the exploited bring down the exploiters, and become exploiters themselves – hopefully to a lower degree.

    Our natural eco-system is amazingly sustainable and life-supportive. No surprise because it has had billions of years to become what it is. It has competition and co-operation. The weak perish – in their current physical form – and life goes on expanding and diversifying and expressing itself ever more beautifully. No animal/plant can hoard too many resources. Death comes quickly to relieve suffering of sickness, old age, and relative genetic weaknesses. I suspect our human value system will one day mimic mother nature’s.

    It is ideas and cultures that are evolving through our human civilization. Those that are supportive of a healthy civilization will stay, others will perish. We can follow our highest and noblest ideas, but it does not guarantee survival. Our minds are too small to see the co-relation between things and therefore future is not predictable. The only thing we can do is to live our highest ideas, live happily and gratefully in the moment, and not get very righteous about our beliefs.

  6. Ruchir Garg Avatar
    Ruchir Garg

    There are big difference in people: some are driven to excel, some are not. Some love life, others just go through it as a drudgery. There will naturally be large differences between these people in their quality of living. I understand completely when some people resent having to support those who see government hand-out as their right (surely fewer than 47%). In my opinion, food is the only thing that a government should provide for free, considering the state of agriculture and forests today. Everything else – shelter, clothing, health care, schooling – should be obtained by self-effort and philanthropy.

  7. LarryS Avatar
    LarryS

    I was watching a series on Mormons and how they take care of their poor. Each Mormon gives 10% to a fund that has built a huge warehouse and fills it with food and other necessities. Anyone who is in need, anyone, can go to this building and get food. How simple it could be to feed the world. Yet our nation who gives so much money to other poorer nations and no specifics on what to do with those funds, is why the poor still are starving to death. The rich in those countries hoard it and lives in luxury. Saddam Hussein for example, we found rooms stacked full of hundred dollar bills he was keeping for himself.
    Why couldn’t we do this here with the welfare money we spend. Set up warehouses, funded by each giving 10%, let he hungry not starve to death, instead of handing out free money and letting them buy alcohol and cigarettes with it.

  8. Emily Mateka Avatar
    Emily Mateka

    As long as we continue to live in fear that we’re going to ‘lose’ something by giving to the poor, we’re going to continue to either not give, or give very little, if at all. We have to remember the principles taught by the CWG trilogy, one of which is: There’s Enough. The other one is: We Are All One. Therefore, there is enough, and we should be giving to ea. other, as we are simply giving to the poorer, more suffering parts of ourSelves. The separation illusion consciousness is what maintains the fear-based behaviours which propagate this disparity between the rich and the poor to begin with.

    I mySelf overcame homelessness with the help of a halfway house for the mentally ill, my disability/SSI, my mantra disciplines, and my magickal workings with God/dess as I perceive Hir. If it were not for these little blessings I wouldn’t be here this far, and I wouldn’t even have a laptop upon which to type these words, let alone participate in this conversation that goes around the World. One of the keys to manifesting wealth is an attitude of gratitude, which truly goes a long way. One way to start is by being grateful for the very breath which you take in, and for the fact that you woke up this morning in relatively one piece. Anything else you have in your life you can always add to said list of blessings to be grateful for, and so on, till your Ace of Cups is truly overflowing with abundance. The more you are grateful to God/dess for, the more S/He will bless you with, believe it or not. Try it and see if I am wrong– you won’t regret it.

  9. Lloyd Avatar
    Lloyd

    I could write a book about my thoughts on this subject, but space and time is limited here and now, so I will attempt to cut to the heart of the issue. Can we create Heaven on Earth, of course, once we create it within our own hearts and minds. We create what we believe to be REAL. Can I embrace you as myself? Do I want you to be free to pursue and realize your highest good, and do I believe that it will benefit me and my highest good? If the answer is affirmative why would I withhold my assistance from you, if I really believe that you and I are One? Do I live my life this way, as best as I can? Do you?

    What is my responsibility to this life we share? Am I willing to give of myself to fulfill my responsibility to our Oneness, or do I still withhold from others because I hold a belief that we are not One, and you will take more than you give back to others, not just to me? Seperation or Oneness, awareness and trust in the force of Unconditional Love or fear and greed that insights me to withhold my gifts from our Oneness, this is the question each of us need to answer.

    I understand we do not live in this society that shares this belief of our Oneness, yet…..but it is evolving, and we control the direction. We can create Heaven on Earth, but we must live it Ourselves and share it with others. This is what we are already doing each day, evolving toward utopia, heaven on Earth. Do you believe in Unconditional Love flowing within ALL, or do you still hold onto your fear of others and the thought that others are different than yourself? One though ie belief leads toward speeding up the evolution toward utopia and the other slows down the process, but I believe it will evolve for our world. The time it takes depend upon how long we continue to hold onto our fears of expressing our Oneness.

    So which party in this election will best promote your highest good? Which party upholds your belief in Oneness and promotes freedom for the majority of humanity? Answer these questions and you have your answer as who will best serve the common good of our society. Namaste’
    Butch

  10. David Avatar
    David

    First and foremost, Thanks Neale for taking time to do what you do – consistently.

    The question of sharing what we have with the less fortunate can best be answered if we consider the words of Jesus concerning abundance. He taught that we should always ‘Ask, Seek and Knock’… the result of our asking, seeking and knocking is that we WE WILL RECEIVE, FIND AND DOORS will be opened for us. There’s no question about it, we shall get what we desire in our hearts!

    But here is how he finishes off when wrapping up about the topic, ‘Therefore, in everything, DO UNTO OTHERS WHAT YOU WOULD HAVE THEM DO UNTO YOU, THIS IS THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS.’

    How I relate to this issue is that we are all desiring to become something grander than what we are currently experiencing. The easiest path, following the example I’ve just stated above, is to allow others to become what they truly desire to be or experience – as they interact with us in whichever situation. We are to be the source of that which we wish to have/be/experience. This, according to me, should be the central theme we choose to educate our children upon.

    We should teach everyone that it is ok to:

    1. Seek, Knock and Ask.

    2. After making the request, go about looking for opportunities to be the source of that which we’ve requested.

    Infact, it is the only sustainable path to abundance for ALL.

    Love,

    David

  11. Inger Lise Avatar
    Inger Lise

    Please have anybody thought upon the first idea about the word “communism”….THE IDEA arised as equality to all peoples in the first place, but the IDEA got totally “out-of-hand” and absolutely “out-of-proportion,” mostly because of none education for the people. Poverty always seems to be the seed of all wars, and the lower vibration of greediness, which again leading to the growth of the tyrants.

    Obviously the consciousness among people wasn`t mature enough to grip the main purpose of a united mankind back then.
    F.Inst. The European Union have tried to gather the countries(in Europe)to be a UNITED NATION, as in the U.S., but still each state to be with their own identity….(the own country Norway, is still not with the E.U., but the ecconomic tractate).
    as a souverign identity….But the common ecconomy have failed, despite of all the splendid effort(surely it is many leaders who have BEGUN with the ideal of Oneness, but later on it seems the ideal have vanished somewhere)in using the taxes for the better, as many of you have explained in depth above.
    And Thank you.
    P.S. But what if everything physical will be A State of Mind? And Time is created by us? Is it an ongoing Hologram, and a sort of repating the very same circles, eventually to be spiralling ourselves out of a specific mind-set ?
    By-the way: I`ll tell you my friends, of you would have all fainted of knowing about the sky-high taxes here in Norway(and it is only 5 million inhabitants). The most expensive country in the world will be situated as the bastion up north(maybe besides Switzerland, which is not a member of the E.U. either, as far as I`ll know by now).
    Okay, when using the symbolism:The more you are giving away by heart, the more comes back to you in return.”

  12. Stephen mills Avatar
    Stephen mills

    This gap will continue to accelerate as this is just a characteristic of our old cultural story nothing will change this until our beliefs change -bring on Tomorrow’s god today?

    Chapter 20 from Neale,s book Tomorrow,s god-Throwing the money changers out-again illuminates and gives us the real reasons why poverty exists upon our abundant planet .

    It is from the dual illusions of insufficiency and Disunity that our economy emerges .The idea that there is not enough of what humans need to be happy and the idea that human beings are separate from each other ,forms the basis of our entire economic model.This is a direct quote from the book.

    How can anyone be truly wealthy while others are dying?

    True wealth is knowing and implementing the guiding principles that we are all one and there,s enough of everything that we think we need to be happy .

    The time for action is know ,how much more can we stress life ,something,s going to give ,humans are at the threshold.

  13. Lloyd Avatar
    Lloyd

    Is anyone paying attention to the wealth gap within our societies? Everyone knows it exist, and everyone is paying attention, and to some extent is doing something about it. Those on the lower end struggle to survive and will ultimately revolt against it to take what they know is required in order to survive, a natural instinct. Those on the upper end want to maintain the status quo so their lifestyle does not change, yet they know it isn’t fair or just for them to have more than they need because their survival isn’t at risk. They feel the struggle below them and they fear the momentum building so their interest is in maintaining the illusion that they deserve to have more than others because they “work” harder.

    So what is going on in our society? Everyone wants to survive, but what is a societies responsibility to its members? We call this government, and the responsibility of this government is to protect and provide for the highest good of its members. Government in the American society as stated in our Constitution is suppose to fair and just and a servant of all the People. If this is our goal, then the question is have we succeeded in constructing such a government? If we have injustice in our society how can we correct it and what means are at our disposal to make this change? This isn’t a religious issue, nor an economic issue, it is a human rights issue and as a society it is our responsibility as individual members to educate ourselves and to act upon our fact findings, to accomplish our goals as a society.

    So what are human rights? Enough food to feed ourselves, education to allow us to be productive members of our society, housing to exist within, health care to continue to exist in a body that can be productive, and support to assist the individual to perform productively for our society….any others? Is this what our government, society is placing value upon and working to provide?

    When I look at our government I do not find this to be true. I see that the wealth gap has given more influence to those with the wealth, and much less to those without. Corporations, who are not human, and who values greed and wealth over human rights, has gained the upper hand in influences the laws and regulations our government is demanding of its members. This unfair influence has warped our view of each other and our society, and it is building walls to protect the wealthy from the demands of the majority for their human rights. The only tool that the majority has to work with is our vote and our voice, and how we spend our wealth regardless of how small it may be.

    So what demands can we make that would turn around our government for the betterment of our society? Fair tax for all, including corporations, ie no loop holes, health care for all, free education for all, food and housing for those without, and jobs that fulfill an individuals need to be productive and a benefit to our society. As for military spending, much less than what we currently are doing. Once we fix ourselves, our society, and become a just and fair country, then it will influence other countries to view us less threatening and more valued in our collective world environment. Can we do this, absolutely once we unite and state to our government what we expect from them and their actions toward all of us.

    Does anyone else have any ideas about what human rights we may be missing? Namaste’
    Butch

  14. mewabe Avatar
    mewabe

    I think we may be forgetting the fact that, generally speaking of course, money is not used by the extremely wealthy as a means to attain happiness but to exercise power.

    This is why the very rich, generally speaking, never have enough, because their thirst for power is a neurotic compulsion that by definition can never be satisfied.

    This thirst for power is akin to a hole within their soul that could never be filled by power, or by anything else for that matter, as this perceived inner emptiness, or lack, is an illusion.

    Money means very little, having mountains of physical possessions means very little to such individuals, all that matters is the power (over society, over people, in terms of political influence etc) that such wealth provides.

    Money used in this context, as a source of power, is as much a drug as any other drug, and should be understood as such.

    Why are we missing this point here?

  15. Judith Devlin Avatar
    Judith Devlin

    Seems there is really no right or wrong and Justice depends on who’s in charge..

    The only thing I feel I know any more is that we are all connected. But that won’t matter until one passes to the other side..

    Sigh.

  16. Laura Jean Pringle Avatar
    Laura Jean Pringle

    I wish that wealthy people who haven’t had the experience of living in poverty- Have that experience! For a long enough time- that they really believe this is their reality. I pray that they experience the feeling of wondering and worrying how they will be able to procure the simplest things. Then, they will learn to cherish those things- and see that material wealth is something they really don’t need. As a result, they will develop compassion and understanding for those who haven’t been so fortunate, and feel compelled to teach or show the underprivileged how to attain the things they need. (What a fairy tale:)

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