I visited Jackson Hole years ago, before the extreme wealth gap occurred. It is truly breathtaking and I can see why the extremely wealthy flocked there. A quick search reveals that most single family homes are over 15 million...lots of the huge log and stone "mansions" that the ultra wealthy build in the west.
I would love to at least visit and stay for a few days. I don't understand why the "ultra-wealthy" must build such huge residences. It kills me to think of all the resources used to build something only a a few people will ever use...and for a private home? It's insane and quite disgusting to me.
I know several people who used to work as bartenders, ski instructors, and other service roles in Jackson to support their "ski bum" lifestyle. All of them have had to move out in recent months, explaining that one can no longer live in the city on a working class income.
To me, it seems like a slow moving crisis, as the city will soon be the ultra-wealthy with no one to serve their food, clean their homes, etc.
Interesting article Joan! One of the most interesting sections referred to how “wealth resides in a handful of Americans” but how millionaires and billionaires do give to philanthropies.
I think it would be helpful for readers to have a more complete understanding of exactly how much money is being donated to address many of the country’s and world’s challenges:
As an illustration, here’s a quote from The Giving Pledge and their pledges donating over $600 Billion dollars of their net worth upon their death.
“The Giving Pledge is a continually growing global community of over 230 signatories from 28 different countries.”
- I’d love to cut and paste all of the global challenges that organizations such as The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Clinton’s Global Initiative, Rockefeller, Carnegie, and countless other Foundations (endowments) donate to charities every year, but the list and the charitable contributions are too long and too staggering.
I’ve been to Wyoming - there’s literally not a more empty state in the entire US (maybe Alaska) - I’d guess after traveling through the PNW this summer for 2 weeks - those $3.5 million dollar homes have everything to do with the labor and resources needed to transport building materials and laborers through the hundreds of miles of barren lands of Nebraska, Iowa, Idaho, California, Washington, and Oregon. Let alone maintenance and energy costs through out the year have to be nuts!
IMO - the US government needs to invest in sustainable industries not tax the wealthy. My generation and younger ones need jobs that can last a little longer than 1-3 years for $12-15 dollars an hour in distribution, fast food and hospitality, or education.
Where’s our generation’s equivalent jobs in gas, coal, railroad, and steel?
There’s a huge trickle down to the economy from our parent’s who could work and retire after 30 years and receive and afford a pension, home, and college for their kids and families.
Americans want to work! But there are no high paying and long term jobs! The federal government could have invested $5 trillion in propping up new industries in solar, hydro, and wind versus cutting $1000 checks during Covid!
Billionaires aren’t preventing the creation of jobs. How many people are employed by Tesla, Amazon, and Space X? 100,000’s!!
The economy is complicated, and I don’t have all the answers. But, there’s a trend in America for the past 20-40 years: “Just goto college!” And everything will be fine. You’ll find a high paying job and be able to take care of yourself and your family.
Not true. But this is still the push from K-12 and everyone believes “education will save the day!”
It’s just creating an Academic Industrial Complex of student loan debt, useless degrees, and a populace of uneducated who have even less hope than those holding a 4 year degree.
Thanks for your comment, Zin. Interesting that I do agree with most of what you say here, for what that's worth! I've mentioned here before that it's important to have an economy that works for those who choose not to go to a two or four year college— got that from Pete Buttigieg!
But I do believe that the rich and ultra rich should be taxed at a higher rate and pay more in taxes at every level. Even Warren Buffet said that his secretary pays a higher effective tax rate than he does, and that is unfair and needs to be remedied. I also was way in favor of the checks sent directly to individuals after our economy was completely shut down. In fact, I thought those checks were way too small!
And I believe we have been and continue to invest in renewable energy which will create quite a few jobs. But our government needs to invest much more in renewable energy and that has been stymied by a number of members of Congress who are beholden to the fossil fuel industry.
And the economy is certainly more complicated than my narrow understanding, but it irks me that we don't find a new approach to deal with the same pattern of problems. How many times do we need to complete the same, negative cycle and not do anything different to break it?
The money for those checks and loan forgiveness come from somewhere - us! Our kids! Grandkids!
Can a few trillion get diverted from bologna sandwich research? Heck yeah - and I’d agree to that! But the problem by and large is : we’ve got a populace whose living in opulence compared to the rest of the world: A/C, indoor plumbing, free education, and no civil war, health epidemic like TB and HIV and cholera decimating 3rd world countries. Not to mention $1 Big Macs!!
I mean - you can earn a REAL living in fast food and get a free meal every day: and a college tuition reimbursement education paid for by McDs! Amazon too! Is it perfect? No. I forgot to add another HUGE employer: Microsoft. Google : how many millionaires or kids and Gen X, Y, Z are making six figs making creative content on YT and Patreon and Substack?
My point is: America ain’t all bad and neither are the jobs that Billionaires create.
The political lobby machine is another animal for another day/conversation. Love your thoughts and posts - keep them coming!!!
America is definitely not all bad by any means. I love our form of government. The main idea I'm exploring here is "why the poor become poor and stay poor" in our country. We must be aware of what is going on with the laws, policies and culture, and why and who is pulling the strings (who has the power), so we can make changes within the system to improve lives for ALL of our citizens—so that we ALLl have a better shot at thriving rather than just existing.
I visited Jackson Hole years ago, before the extreme wealth gap occurred. It is truly breathtaking and I can see why the extremely wealthy flocked there. A quick search reveals that most single family homes are over 15 million...lots of the huge log and stone "mansions" that the ultra wealthy build in the west.
I would love to at least visit and stay for a few days. I don't understand why the "ultra-wealthy" must build such huge residences. It kills me to think of all the resources used to build something only a a few people will ever use...and for a private home? It's insane and quite disgusting to me.
I know several people who used to work as bartenders, ski instructors, and other service roles in Jackson to support their "ski bum" lifestyle. All of them have had to move out in recent months, explaining that one can no longer live in the city on a working class income.
To me, it seems like a slow moving crisis, as the city will soon be the ultra-wealthy with no one to serve their food, clean their homes, etc.
That segment was almost eerie—what are we doing to ourselves?
Interesting article Joan! One of the most interesting sections referred to how “wealth resides in a handful of Americans” but how millionaires and billionaires do give to philanthropies.
I think it would be helpful for readers to have a more complete understanding of exactly how much money is being donated to address many of the country’s and world’s challenges:
As an illustration, here’s a quote from The Giving Pledge and their pledges donating over $600 Billion dollars of their net worth upon their death.
“The Giving Pledge is a continually growing global community of over 230 signatories from 28 different countries.”
- I’d love to cut and paste all of the global challenges that organizations such as The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Clinton’s Global Initiative, Rockefeller, Carnegie, and countless other Foundations (endowments) donate to charities every year, but the list and the charitable contributions are too long and too staggering.
I’ve been to Wyoming - there’s literally not a more empty state in the entire US (maybe Alaska) - I’d guess after traveling through the PNW this summer for 2 weeks - those $3.5 million dollar homes have everything to do with the labor and resources needed to transport building materials and laborers through the hundreds of miles of barren lands of Nebraska, Iowa, Idaho, California, Washington, and Oregon. Let alone maintenance and energy costs through out the year have to be nuts!
IMO - the US government needs to invest in sustainable industries not tax the wealthy. My generation and younger ones need jobs that can last a little longer than 1-3 years for $12-15 dollars an hour in distribution, fast food and hospitality, or education.
Where’s our generation’s equivalent jobs in gas, coal, railroad, and steel?
There’s a huge trickle down to the economy from our parent’s who could work and retire after 30 years and receive and afford a pension, home, and college for their kids and families.
Americans want to work! But there are no high paying and long term jobs! The federal government could have invested $5 trillion in propping up new industries in solar, hydro, and wind versus cutting $1000 checks during Covid!
Billionaires aren’t preventing the creation of jobs. How many people are employed by Tesla, Amazon, and Space X? 100,000’s!!
The economy is complicated, and I don’t have all the answers. But, there’s a trend in America for the past 20-40 years: “Just goto college!” And everything will be fine. You’ll find a high paying job and be able to take care of yourself and your family.
Not true. But this is still the push from K-12 and everyone believes “education will save the day!”
It’s just creating an Academic Industrial Complex of student loan debt, useless degrees, and a populace of uneducated who have even less hope than those holding a 4 year degree.
Thanks for your comment, Zin. Interesting that I do agree with most of what you say here, for what that's worth! I've mentioned here before that it's important to have an economy that works for those who choose not to go to a two or four year college— got that from Pete Buttigieg!
But I do believe that the rich and ultra rich should be taxed at a higher rate and pay more in taxes at every level. Even Warren Buffet said that his secretary pays a higher effective tax rate than he does, and that is unfair and needs to be remedied. I also was way in favor of the checks sent directly to individuals after our economy was completely shut down. In fact, I thought those checks were way too small!
And I believe we have been and continue to invest in renewable energy which will create quite a few jobs. But our government needs to invest much more in renewable energy and that has been stymied by a number of members of Congress who are beholden to the fossil fuel industry.
And the economy is certainly more complicated than my narrow understanding, but it irks me that we don't find a new approach to deal with the same pattern of problems. How many times do we need to complete the same, negative cycle and not do anything different to break it?
The money for those checks and loan forgiveness come from somewhere - us! Our kids! Grandkids!
Can a few trillion get diverted from bologna sandwich research? Heck yeah - and I’d agree to that! But the problem by and large is : we’ve got a populace whose living in opulence compared to the rest of the world: A/C, indoor plumbing, free education, and no civil war, health epidemic like TB and HIV and cholera decimating 3rd world countries. Not to mention $1 Big Macs!!
I mean - you can earn a REAL living in fast food and get a free meal every day: and a college tuition reimbursement education paid for by McDs! Amazon too! Is it perfect? No. I forgot to add another HUGE employer: Microsoft. Google : how many millionaires or kids and Gen X, Y, Z are making six figs making creative content on YT and Patreon and Substack?
My point is: America ain’t all bad and neither are the jobs that Billionaires create.
The political lobby machine is another animal for another day/conversation. Love your thoughts and posts - keep them coming!!!
America is definitely not all bad by any means. I love our form of government. The main idea I'm exploring here is "why the poor become poor and stay poor" in our country. We must be aware of what is going on with the laws, policies and culture, and why and who is pulling the strings (who has the power), so we can make changes within the system to improve lives for ALL of our citizens—so that we ALLl have a better shot at thriving rather than just existing.