Saturday, January 22, 2011
"It's About More Than Money"
When we really think about, the premise in this article is pretty darn right...
Michael Barone recently wrote this and more at NationalReview.com:
"Why don’t voters care more?
One reason is that economic statistics can miss important things that affect people’s lives. After adjusting for inflation, wages may not have risen much since 1973, but that’s partly because the tax code encourages increased compensation in the form of benefits, including health insurance. And it’s partly because the Consumer Price Index overstated the effect of inflation in the 1970s, making 1973 wages look higher than they should in 'real dollars.'
Another reason is that inflation indexes can’t fully account for product improvement and technological progress. I bought my first electronic calculator in 1970 for $110. Today you can buy the same gadget for $1.99 at your local drugstore. The consumer electronics widely available today at declining prices simply didn’t exist in the 1980s."
In addition, as George Mason University economist Tyler Cowen writes in The American Interest, “The inequality of personal well-being is sharply down over the past hundred years and perhaps over the past 20 years, as well.” Bill Gates may have a bigger house than you do, but you have about the same access to good food, to medical care, and even to the Internet as he does.
