@52 kastaco:
What you say has merit, but you ignore that the initial conditions faced by an impoverished and uneducated person are not entirely of their own creation. Certainly it is possible to move up with hard work and effort, but you profoundly misunderstand if you believe everyone can make it “to the top”.
Fundamentally, it is not important to economic growth that people have much income mobility, but it is important that personal incomes grow in proportion to the growth of the economy to sustain that growth. The widening gap between rich and poor is a symptom of this problem.
I would also argue that outside assistance may not be necessary, but in many cases it would make the difference. Nobody survives in our society without assistance of some kind.
Peace.
DS
