Rich get richer, workers struggle

Let them eat Spam. The exponential skewing upward of America's wealth curve continues unabated. CEO types buy ever-more expensive yachts and Rhode Island style mansions with bonuses unconnected to job performance. Weak unions give away the farm, refusing to flex their muscle, and middle-class blue- and white-collar working stiffs metaphorically eat Spam sandwiches because they can't afford the good stuff. Productivity stats soar thanks to hard-working front-liners, but their paychecks don't reflect it. Indeed, over the last six years, productivity in the nonfarm sector rose 18 percent, but inflation-adjusted weekly wages increased a mere 1 percent. Call that fair? Maybe that miniscule pay raise buys a better grade of Spam, but the filet and Perrier, alas, is reserved for the privileged class. Perhaps someday, snookered two-wage-earner, stressed-out families struggling to make ends meet and unable to spend sufficient time nurturing their children, might find a small block of time to contemplate the filthy-rich nanny-hiring class, and wonder why ordinary folks can't indulge in even a small slice of their pie. Not that we should begrudge wealthy individuals truly earning their bucks. But when unctuous hired-gun politicians demand we not engage in class warfare by daring to question why corporate muckamucks and other manipulators feed off our blood, sweat and tears, we should also wonder if P.T. Barnum had it right: A sucker is born every minute. Lawrence Uniglicht, Galloway Township - Atlantic City Press, January 16, 2007