Every American Needs To Know About Richistan ...

How we wish we could write as well as this man can.

But since we know full well that we can't - we won't try.

Better by far, we believe, that we tempt you with teasers & tasters to find out for yourselves the merit of this man's works.

Welcome to Richistan, USA

The American Dream of riches for all is turning into a nightmare of inequality.

But a backlash is brewing, reports Paul Harris in New York

Sunday July 22, 2007 -- 'The Observer'

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... America's super-rich have returned to the days of the Roaring Twenties. As the rest of the country struggles to get by, a huge bubble of multi-millionaires lives almost in a parallel world.

The rich now live in their own world of private education, private health care and gated mansions. They have their own schools and their own banks. They even travel apart - creating a booming industry of private jets and yachts. Their world now has a name, thanks to a new book by Wall Street Journal reporter Robert Frank which has dubbed it 'Richistan'.

There every dream can come true. But for the American Dream itself - which promises everyone can join the elite - the emergence of Richistan is a mixed blessing. 'We in America are heading towards 'developing nation' levels of inequality. We would become like Brazil.

What does that say about us? What does that say about America?' Frank said.

(snip)

Even some of the most wealthy - like Gates and Buffett - have spoken openly of the needs to address the massive 'inequality gap' that they have come to exemplify.

In effect, some of the very richest Americans are calling for themselves to be taxed. In a speech last month Buffett - the third richest man in the world - pointed out that his tax rate was 17.7 per cent of his income while his secretary was taxed at 30 per cent.

'Many of the new super-rich are looking long term at the world and they see a collapsing US education system and health-care system and the disappearance of the middle class and they realise: this is bad for everybody,' said Frank.

(snip)

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