>>109010118To state that the inequality trend escalated as the United States abandoned the gold standard is not accurate. While moderate inflation may affect people with fixed wages, the main causes of inequality were: the weakening of trade unions, deregulation, tax cuts for the rich, weak enforcement of antitrust policy, and globalization without proper labor protection. Countries that abandoned the gold standard did not face the same levels of extreme inequality, as policy is the main factor, not the gold standard.
Deregulation, on the other hand, does not help workers by itself. It often leads to the consolidation of market power in the few, causing prices to rise, wages to fall, and small businesses to shrink. Think about the current state of affairs. The cost of healthcare is rising, the cost of housing is skyrocketing, and common people are struggling, while rich investors are protecting their wealth and moving it from one market to another. Inflation and rising prices hit the poor the hardest, and pro-corporation and pro-rich policies widen the gap.
