Iskandar Maryland

Income Inequality

Income Inequality is an important topic that affects every single American

Dear Madam/Mr President:

You have achieved and cemented your position in history, either by being the first female president or by being the first president to have no political experience whatsoever. I congratulate you on ploughing through the numerous adversities that emanate from both sides of the aisle. But, we are not here to discuss your accomplishment or lack thereof. The US has created a toxic environment. A middle class family struggles to adjust to the increasing inflation and higher tax rates. They are either relegated to a lower class bracket or promoted to an upper-middle class bracket. The percentage of middle class families is decreasing and the amount of wealth is being shifted to the top one percent. The most daunting problem facing you would not be Russian aggression or the militarization of the South China Sea, but is on the income inequality that is killing the US. You can defeat Russia or conquer Asia, but that does not eliminate the fact that more and more wealth is concentrated in fewer and fewer hands in the US.

To prevent this calamity, the wealth should be distributed through taxes and fees. Taxes should not be supported mainly by the middle class. As proposed in the Robin Hood Tax, a small tax of 0.5% on every Wall Street transaction would generate hundreds of billions of dollars. This revenue could then be used to repair, renovate and upgrade crumbling infrastructure throughout the US. A tax on the wealthy would also provide the country the ability to increase the funding to Social Security, MedicAID and MediCare. With this huge influx of revenue, more and more Americans would be secured and protected from the devastation that are caused by recession, depression, war and natural disasters. See it as an investment in the middle class, the future. Researchers have discovered that income inequality stunts economic growth and also is proportionally linked to crime. An unfair society would most likely have a higher crime rate compared to other fair societies. Huge disparities in income would also give The 1% the ability to have huge amounts of political influence according to the landmark case Citizens United Vs. The Federal Elections Committee.

Let these reasons persuade you to commit your time to repairing this problem. May your actions and decisions reflect the will of the People. I hope you will be able to compromise with legislators across the aisle to enact laws in favor of the people, and I hope that you are able to heal the partisan division that has been exhibited this election season.

Sincerely,

Iskandar H.