Redistributing the wealth to close the inequality gap.

The redistribution of wealth is at almost every debate in politics. The democrats and republicans are always at odds with each other over this issue. Essentially the democrats think that rising taxes to pay for different programs to help the lower income families is a way to redistribute the wealth in this country. On the other hand the republicans argue that raising taxes creates economic hardship.

The observations of sociologists show that there is still a large gap in class in this country. Even a deeper observation of sociologists is that race and class work together to perpetuate inequality. The average black household makes 59 cents to the average white household (Shapiro, RCL); the problem of inequality in this country, and around the world is very complex, and coming up with a long term solution is vital in order to solve this problem.

One solution to this problem is to redistribute the wealth. “Family wealth is crucial to opportunities and success in a way that allows families to launch their own social mobility in a self-reliant and independent manner” (Shapiro RCL). Wealth is a great advantage to have, it allows for people to get an education, have better healthcare, and overall more opportunities to gain more wealth throughout their lives. It is like the cliché the rich keep getting richer; which implies that the gap between the poor and rich is growing at an exponentially greater rate.

I believe that redistributing the wealth would help solve the inequality problems in this county, but if done incorrectly it would just be a short term solution. For example let say that the government decided to tax the rich excessively such that there was virtually no gap in wealth. Everyone would have the same opportunities now to get an education and become more wealth. However, over time the same gap between the wealthy and poor would develop and we would be back to square one again. I believe that this gap between the rich and the poor will always exist in a free market, but there are ways to ensure that this gap is controlled.

There are programs such as welfare that work at controlling the inequality gap but the momentum of inequality is still not being controlled. People and races get into a rut and once you are in this rut it is very difficult to get out of it. The problem is further complicated by the opposing cultures; which creates the street mentality attitude. In order to find a long term solution one must break the vicious cycle that is presently the current way of life.

I think the best long term solution that can break this cycle is supplementing education. The government already does this by providing public schools, but if you look at inner city school they are well underfunded. Raising taxes to create more money for education is essential in order to help close the inequality gap. I believe that every one should at least get a chance to go to college as well as well. Providing more people the opportunity to afford to go to college also will redistribute wealth in the long term. Ultimately creating a stronger education system will close the inequality gap by providing opportunities for people to climb out of the inequality rut, and it will improve the economy in the long term.