Income inequality has never concerned me. Other than out of pure jealousy, I cannot think of a single reason why I should care if another person is earning more than I am.
While it has never been a concern of mine, it is something that interests a lot of people, particularly in America. We have some very rich people. And we also have some who are poor.
While inequality is part of natural existence, extreme inequality, not just with income, but in general, is a natural part of American culture.
Take fitness inequality. The show “My 600 Pound Life” could probably only exist with several seasons in America. There are other countries where there could possibly be one season, but America is the only country on earth that regularly produces people who weigh more than 40 stones. It’s the only place that could have multiple seasons.
On the flip side, most of us know someone who has ran in a half marathon in the past two years. (If it weren’t for COVID, most of us probably would have known someone who would have ran a half-marathon in the past 12 months. COVID restrictions probably made us less healthy in that regard, but that’s a different post for a different day.) Many of us know someone who has ran in more than one marathon in their lives. There was a time, and it’s still true throughout much of the world, when it would be extremely rare to find someone who is capable of running such a great distance.
America is a country of extremes. That’s just who we are. If we want to be runners, we will try to be the best runner we know. If we like all-you-can-eat wing nights, we will try to eat more than anyone we know.
Some extreme personality traits can make a person quite lean, while others can make a person quite fat. Some extreme personality traits can make people quite wealthy, while other extreme personality traits can make people quite poor. It should be no surprise that America is full of people on both ends.
One’s wealth is no more of a contributing factor to another’s poverty than one’s fitness is a contributing factor to another’s obesity.
