Good blog
yasemin kimyacioglu
"What is now increasingly accepted is that inequality is corrosive. It can completely undermine the benefits of growth. It contributes to a broad range of social ills – from murder rates to low educational achievement. It undermines public institutions and government accountability. It is self-reinforcing, as elites act to shore up the system that created them. Moreover, a growing body of evidence demonstrates the pernicious impact of inequality on growth itself. Among other findings, recent IMF research papers have illustrated the role of inequality in driving the 2008 financial crisis, and the fact that high levels of inequality shorten the average length of periods of economic growth.
The question of what can and should be done about this is harder, with different answers for different countries. Oxfam is undertaking a major research project to look at the impact of different policies on inequality and growth. But some obvious lessons stand out: progressive taxes and redistributive transfers make a huge difference; universal public services – particularly education and health – are both an income transfer and increase social mobility to reduce future inequality. A focus on inequalities between women and men is not only necessary in its own right but crucial in reducing income and wealthy inequality, and redistribution of land can reduce poverty and prevent growing inequality."