A Horatio Algebra Story

“A new Wall Street Journal-NORC poll finds that the share of people who say they have a good chance of improving their standard of living fell to 25%, a record low in surveys dating to 1987. More than three-quarters said they lack confidence that life for the next generation will be better than their own, the poll found. Nearly 70% of people said they believe the American dream—that if you work hard, you will get ahead—no longer holds true or never did, the highest level in nearly 15 years of surveys.” Americans Lose Faith That Hard Work Leads to Economic Gains.

+ Maybe these numbers have something to do with those numbers. The Top 1% of Americans Have Taken $50 Trillion From the Bottom 90%. (And this article is from back in 2020.)

+ “There were 1,135 billionaires in the U.S. as of 2024—up from 927 in 2020, according to data from Altrata, a wealth-intelligence firm. The biggest concentration, 255 of them, is in California. But the super rich are also behind businesses in places such as Ridgeland, Miss., and Waunakee, Wisc. Collectively, these people are worth about $5.7 trillion.” What We Know About America’s Billionaires.