The Wealth of Humans: Work, Power, and Status in the Twenty-first Century

by Ryan Avent

The systematic undermining of educational opportunities for southern black workers reinforced white belief in their own inherent superiority and created enormous obstacles for these same black workers after the federal government began battling segregation in earnest in the 1960s.

The American Medical Association, for example, works to make it difficult to become an accredited doctor, and thereby works to raise doctor pay.

Economies do not work very well when purchasing power does not flow to those who want to, and indeed who need to, spend. Until markets, or governments, find better ways to spread the benefits of growth broadly, the world faces the risk of recurring, severe crises.

Left alone, the invisible hand is simply the thudding fist of the powerful.

If we are clever enough to think up grass-mowing machines, we should also be clever enough and moral enough to maintain social order without threatening members with impoverishment.