n2doc

n2doc's Journal

December 6, 2017

The richest 1 percent now owns more of the countrys wealth than at any time in the past 50 years

The wealthiest 1 percent of American households own 40 percent of the country's wealth, according to a new paper by economist Edward N. Woolf. That share is higher than it has been at any point since at least 1962, according to Woolf's data, which comes from the federal Survey of Consumer Finances.

From 2013, the share of wealth owned by the 1 percent shot up by nearly three percentage points. Wealth owned by the bottom 90 percent, meanwhile, fell over the same period. Today, the top 1 percent of households own more wealth than the bottom 90 percent combined. That gap, between the ultrawealthy and everyone else, has only become wider in the past several decades.

Let's talk a bit about that wealth gap. Wealth, often described as net worth, describes how much stuff you actually have: It's the value of your assets minus the value of your debts. If you have a $250,000 house but you still owe $200,000 to the bank on it, and you have no other debts or financial assets, that means your net worth is $50,000.

In the United States, the distribution of that wealth is even more skewed toward the top than the distribution of income.

more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/12/06/the-richest-1-percent-now-owns-more-of-the-countrys-wealth-than-at-any-time-in-the-past-50-years/

December 6, 2017

Google pulls YouTube from Amazon devices, escalating spat

(Reuters) - A rare public spat in the technology industry escalated on Tuesday when Google said it would block its video streaming application YouTube from two Amazon.com Inc devices and criticized the online retailer for not selling Google hardware.

The feud is the latest in Silicon Valley to put customers in the crossfire of major competitors. Amazon and Google, which is owned by Alphabet Inc, square off in many areas, from cloud computing and online search, to selling voice-controlled gadgets like the Google Home and Amazon Echo Show.

The stakes are high: many in the technology industry expect that interacting with computers by voice will become widespread, and it is unclear if Amazon, Google or another company will dominate the space. Amazon’s suite of voice-controlled devices has outsold Google’s so far, according to a study by research firm eMarketer from earlier this year.

In a statement, Google said, ”Amazon doesn’t carry Google products like Chromecast and Google Home, doesn’t make (its) Prime Video available for Google Cast users, and last month stopped selling some of (our sister company) Nest’s latest products.

more
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-tech-alphabet/google-pulls-youtube-from-amazon-devices-escalating-spat-idUSKBN1DZ37O

December 6, 2017

Trump set to torch the Middle East for America's religious right

By Tim Hume and Greg Walters

Dec 6, 2017
Donald Trump is expected to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital Wednesday, an appeal to his domestic base that will likely set off a furious reaction across the Muslim world and doom hopes for a two-state solution, experts say.

Despite warnings from world leaders and from members of his own cabinet, Trump is due to deliver a speech at 1 p.m. ET Wednesday from the White House in which he will recognize the disputed city as Israel’s capital, and set in motion a process for the U.S. embassy to relocate from Tel Aviv, according to officials.

“The president believes this is a recognition of reality,” said an official who briefed reporters on the impending announcement Tuesday.

“We’re going forward on the basis of a truth that is undeniable. It’s just a fact.” The official said that moving the embassy was expected to take a matter of years.

more

https://news.vice.com/story/trump-jerusalem-announcement-israel

December 6, 2017