WEALTHY CAN BID UP THE PRICES

Thomas Edsall, writing in the New York Times, noted: “Growing income inequality in the U.S. has meant that, as those at the top are able bid up the price of valued goods like housing and access to good schools, those in lower groups have struggled to maintain their positions.” [quoting an essay titled, “Keeping Up With the Joneses,” presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association by Neil Fligstein, a professor of sociology at Berkeley, Pat Hastings, a Ph.D. candidate at Berkeley, and Adam Goldstein, a professor of sociology at Princeton University.]

Thomas B. Edsall, “How Falling Behind the Joneses Fueled the Rise of Trump,” New York Times, July 7, 2016, Opinion Pages.