We’ve seen the gulf between rich and poor widen dramatically over the past decade. If a smaller percentage of the population has a greater percentage of the cash, then why are advanced phones, computers and especially televisions flying of the shelf? It turns out that the prices of those items are going down. But “prices are rising on the very things that are essential for climbing out of poverty.” The Atlantic’s Derek Thompson: Why America’s essentials are getting more expensive while its toys are getting cheap.