Final answer:
Wealth inequality is a widely debated topic, emphasizing the vast wealth concentration among the top 1% and raising issues about fairness and meritocracy in the U.S. economy. Historical capitalist structures and laissez-faire economics have led to wealth creation but also increased poverty and economic disparity.
Step-by-step explanation:
The issue of wealth inequality and its concentration among the top 1% is a significant concern for many. People are upset because a small portion of society holds a vast majority of the wealth, which has implications on equality, opportunity, and basic fairness within the economy.
This disparity in wealth has historical roots in capitalist systems where wealth creation is incentivized but often results in exacerbated poverty and economic inequality.
The argument stating that poverty is an inescapable feature of capitalism and the market economy explains that the ideas of laissez-faire economics during the Enlightenment period led to increased wealth creation, but also widened the gap between the rich and the poor.
In the United States, as of 2010, 20 percent of Americans owned 90 percent of the wealth, highlighting the substantial gap and raising questions about meritocracy in society.
Furthermore, conflict theorists argue that this concentration of wealth is not a fair representation of who deserves it, linking current economic structures to historical class conflicts between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.
The debate continues as to whether the degree of inequality we see today is acceptable, or if it is a problem that requires correction. Income and wealth differences need to be distinguished, as wealth accumulates over time and can create even larger disparities than income alone.