Monday, October 16, 2006

U.S. and European Inequality

Income inequality in the United States is greater than it is in western Europe. Average income is also higher in the United States. This graph (source) puts those two well-known facts in a new light. (Click on the graph to enlarge.)

The bottom line: The poor in the United States have about the same real income as the poor in western Europe. The rich in the United States, however, are much richer.