Addressing Income Inequality

In the Washington Post article, the author concludes that sending more people to college is a modest solution to addressing income inequality “compared to the overall level of inequality in the economy as a whole”. However, the article provides little evidence to support that sending more people to college is not a solution to bridging the gap between the rich and poor. Second, the writer does not seem to evaluate alternative solutions that would be more effective in addressing this ongoing concern of income inequality. The writer assumes, without citing specific evidence, that we cannot solve income inequality by sending people to college. While it is true that diplomas will not solve America’s issues of wealth disparity, there is evidence presented in this article that proves education will create some improvements. According to the writer, “those Americans making less than three quarters of the rest of the population would increase by 9 percent, or about $3,020 a year”. Although the writer concludes that these improvements are miniscule, he does not provide alternative solutions that would render the same, if not, greater results.
It is understood that our nation’s inequalities do not rest on the idea that not enough kids are becoming educated. Rather, this massive increase of inequality can be traced back to the skyrocketing earnings among the wealthy individuals. Educating the 6.8 million men who currently do not hold a bachelors diploma would increase median earnings, but would not be detrimental to helping the current levels of inequality. For example, the measure of disparity between the rich and poor would only decline from .57 to .55. Although these numbers are microscopic to the larger picture of wealth inequality, they are improvements for bridging this widening gap. Despite the unrealistic goal of granting college degrees to the 6.8 million Americans who do not have one, other efforts made by the government could make a college degree more accessible. For instance, expanding the number of Pell grants to students who need it. Another suggestion by the author is to redesign tax credits to college savings for these lower income families. Financial support makes college more attainable for students from working-class and lower-income families. More educational opportunities can play a huge role in softening this perpetual gap between socioeconomic classes. More importantly, income inequality requires the government to take some suitable measures. Inequality of income is correlated with how income is shared amongst the nation’s peoples. The government is responsible for the escalating earnings among wealthy Americans and the decrease of earnings for individuals in lower socioeconomic classes. To address these issues, governments should take necessary steps towards improving the living standards of the citizens that are less …show more content…
There are unstated assumptions upon which the argument turns, specifically the assertion that earnings for people with college degrees have declined. The author’s argument would profit enormously from further research, which would provide solutions that are more reasonable than stating that education is not an answer. Once the research is complete, the author can make a better-informed solution for income inequality. It is evident that the gap between poor and wealthy is dramatic. No community can prosper and evolve safely unless the gaps are bridged between people at all aspects giving a fair chance to everyone to live in comfort if they worked reasonably hard to achieve