Matthew Desmond, "Poverty, By America"

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Matthew Desmond, "Poverty, By America" (2023)

 

책 첫머리 인용글:

We imagine that their sufferings are

one thing and our life another. -- Leo Tolstoy

 

(저자 에세이: Why Poverty Persists in America)

 

서평 -- The Guardian

 

 

아래는 책 본문에서:

 

Belgium, Canada, Italy, and many other countries haven't experienced the kind of wage stagnation and surge in income inequality that the United States has. Why? A big reason is that those countries managed to keep their unions. (p. 64)

 

In 2020, the gap separating everyone in America below the poverty line and the poverty line itself amounted to $177 billion.... Where would the money come from? The best place to start, in my view, is with the cheaters. The IRS now estimates that the United States loses more than $1 trillion a year in unpaid taxes, most of it owing totax avoidance by multinational corporations and wealthy families. (pp. 152-154)

 

We need to ensure that aid directed at poor peop;e stays in their pockets, instead of being captured by companies whose low wages are subsidized by government benefits, or by landlords who raise the rents as their tenants' wages rise, or by banks and payday loan outlets that issue exorbitant fines and fees. (p. 169)

 

We support a government actively striving to end scarcity by rebalancing the nation's safety net and expanding policies that empower the poor. We detest all forms of exploitation, whether it is carried out by corporations, property owners, or financial institutions, even if -- especially if -- it benefits us. We oppose racism, segregation, and opportunity hoarding in our communities, and stand for shared prosperity. (p. 223, in Epilogue)