Questions tagged [wealth]
14 questions
53
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Has the distribution of income and wealth in the USA got much more skewed towards the rich in the last 4 decades?
I recently asked this question about a statistic quoted by Kurt Andersen designed to illustrate the current wealth distribution in the USA in his book Evil Geniuses. It provoked a great deal of (unintended) discussion as I only wanted to check…
matt_black
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2 % of 'the rich' pay 50 % of taxes in Germany
A statement made by a user under a news article claims that 50 % of all taxes are paid by 'rich people' being defined as making more than 70.000 €/a.
(...) 2% der "Reichen" zahlen 50% der Steuern in Deutschland. (...)
This freely translates…
OddDev
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33
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Did the single motherhood rate among black Americans jump from 20% to 70% since the 1960s?
In conservative responses to racial disparities involving wealth and other things a lack of fatherhood figures within the black community is often cited as causative. For example, Ben Shapiro said about 4 years ago:
[If racial disparities are not…
user11643
31
votes
3 answers
Does Queen Elizabeth II own 6,600 million acres of land?
According to WhoOwnsTheWorld.com, Queen Elizabeth II owns 6,600 million acres. They claim,
Largest five personal landowners on Earth
Queen Elizabeth II 6,600 million acres
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia 553 million acres
King…
Evan Carroll
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Are all the citizens of UAE very rich?
There is a widespread belief that all the citizens of the UAE are very rich. In particular, a person I know who grew up in UAE suggested that "Pretty much every citizen has a Bentley" is literally true.
How close is this to reality? Is the average…
RomanSt
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Can a society become unhappier with an increase in wealth?
People like to claim that less developed countries are happier, because they live the simple life and stronger family ties. We've all heard the saying:
Money can't buy you happiness.
Which is easy to dismiss by showing that rich nations do better…
Kit Sunde
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18
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Is the “Asshole Effect” a phenomenon correlated with wealth?
From the Globe & Mail article “It’s true: The rich really are ruder”:
Psychologist Paul Piff has coined a memorable label for the phenomenon: the Asshole Effect. Prof. Piff and his colleagues have shown that there is a reliable correlation, across…
Brian M. Hunt
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Are Americans less prosperous and less educated than their parents for the first time?
In the movie Inside Job, Matt Damon makes the following claim:
For the first time in history, average Americans have less education and are less prosperous than their parents.
Is that true? What measurements of prosperity support his point and…
Publius
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Does 0.5% of the world's population make at least $1 million USD per year?
James Touchi-Peters recently claimed in a Vice article that
One out of every 200 people on the planet makes more than a million dollars a year. That’s one half of one percent of the world population.
That unsubstantiated statistic struck me as…
ESultanik
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Were any billionaires onboard the Titan submersible when it imploded?
The Oceangate submersible Titan was lost in June 2023 en route to the wreckage of the Titanic. Debris has been found and the coast guard reported that the vessel catastrophically imploded, killing everyone on board.
Five people were in the…
Brady Gilg
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Do the world's eight richest people have as much wealth as the poorest 50%
The charity Oxfam recently launched a media campaign about global inequality with the startling statistic (this page on their website):
...inequality is rising: the combined wealth of the richest 1 per cent will overtake that of the other 99 per…
matt_black
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8
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Is Michael Moore worth approximately $50 million?
On the Celebrity Net Worth website, this claim is made:
Michael Moore net worth: Michael Moore is a documentary filmmaker and author who has a net worth of $50 million.
Is this true? This seems incredible to me because of his movies.
user20862
8
votes
2 answers
Would the United States lose its title as the richest country if we exclude top 5% wealth holders?
I read this claim in Quora:
The "richest" country in the world (the u.s.) would assuredly lose that place if you excluded just the top 5% of wealth holders
Is this claim true? Is there any evidence to back it up?
Vinoth Kumar C M
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Are the locations of Roman roads still linked to higher prosperity today?
The Romans built a large number of roads across much of Europe. Their primary function was to aid military movement and communication. But they became useful routes for trade and were, therefore, often linked to increased local prosperity.
A recent…
matt_black
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