Trickle Down Economic: Does It Work?

    Last night on the game show Jeopardy the final jeopardy answer was Trickle Down Economic Theory.  It stimulated my thinking about wealth inequality in the United States.   As far as I can tell this theory is supported by many politicians has not worked.   As the wealthy one percent has gotten wealthier from tax relief, the result has impoverished the bottom ten percent of wage earners.   If this theory is not working, why are we continuing to foster this policy?   In fact, this approach has significantly increased US debt by trillions.   At the same time more of the lower income individuals have not reaped the benefit of national domestic product growth.  Today I did a bit of research to understand the complexities of this issue.

    First I was led to Googling to get a some inkling what it is all about. However, my memory was jogged to recall the days when I would have lunches at the Cornell University Statler Hotel Faculty Club with the famed behavioral economist Robert H. Frank.  (Google him if you want his full story.  He is now retired to emeritus status living in Florida). Then I reached down to my bookshelf and pulled out my autographed copy of his 2011 book The Darwin Economy.   After skimming the preface and a few salient chapters that elucidate elements of taxation benefits versus costs, I find no justification for extensive tax cuts that move wealth upward. In fact it does not result in investment that gives support to the economic middle and lower class of United States. It would seem that greed has no bounds and seeking to outdo our fellow human beings is a bugaboo to the development of a just and civil society.  That's my screed for now.  However, I will try to put my outrage aside and seek a better understanding of how we as Americans have arrived at this state.