The Broken Ladder: How Inequality Changes the Way We Think, Live and Die

Not only does income inequality heighten racial bias, but prejudice can also perpetuate income inequality.

Earned Income Tax Credit, which subsidizes the income of poor working families.

these observations suggest that the rise in inequality that has occurred over the past few decades might be contributing to increasingly intense partisanship and political conflict.

Religion is not a coherent set of propositions that are either true or false, the way a scientific theory is. Instead, many people believe because of their personal subjective experiences. These might include the awe and wonder of nature, the intimacy of belonging to a close community, or the comforting experience of hearing God speak to you in a f

as people’s lives become more secure in material terms, they have less need for the consolations of religion.

People quickly adapt to their higher economic status, as each rise in income becomes the set point for the new normal. As a result, average happiness is entirely unrelated to economic growth over time. This surprising finding has become known as the Easterlin paradox.

Those who see the world as safe, and who are motivated by exploring and trying new experiences, tend to support more liberal views.

This system of reciprocal sharing works because people remembered.

As the haves and the have-nots grow further apart, we can expect the effects of social comparisons to weigh more and more heavily.

Subjects did not choose complete equality: They still believed the top fifth should have a far greater proportion of the total wealth than the bottom fifth.