So why is public opinion so different than that of economists? The main reason is that public opinion pins problems on government, and simplifying it as governmental inaction regarding income distribution. Meanwhile, economists, from a market perspective, believe that the government's usefulness is limited. For example, for economists, the creation of employment is an important factor in improving income distribution; the public, on the other hand, looks to re-distribution instead. The great majority of economists believe that to solve rural poverty, we still should rely on growth and the augmentation of market and economic mechanisms, job creation, and the shifting of surplus rural labor forces. These, I'm afraid, were our main past methods of reducing poverty and spurring development, and are all still important today. If the government must to be brought into play, then it needs to spur job creation and a transfer of the labor force (for example, financial deepening, or the reduction of government-supported monopolies). If we can look at the problem through the lens of job creation, then perhaps the differences in opinion can be bridged after all.
- Closing the Income Inequality Gap | 2007-03-16
- All for the Happiness Index, Say Yay | 2007-02-07
- Responsible Modernization in 2007 | 2007-02-07
