tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4900303239154048192.post4038164763434632638..comments2024-03-06T06:34:42.881-05:00Comments on EconoSpeak: "Luddite" Larry and the Downward Ramp of OpportunityUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4900303239154048192.post-24881122768726181652014-06-12T08:20:31.170-04:002014-06-12T08:20:31.170-04:00It amazes me how many popular economists seem to t...It amazes me how many popular economists seem to think that, just because aggregate wealth increases, demand must increase as well. Since the wealthy save more of the income than do the poor, it matters for demand who exactly reaps the increase in wealth - so it could well be the case that technological changes that increase productivity and wealth might actually lead to falling demand, if these changes massively redirect income towards the wealthy, and the differential in the marginal propensity to save is high enough.<br /><br />All of which is to say that I see no reason why this increase in productivity shouldn't allow the wealthy (who have lop-sided political influence) to siphon those gains off to themselves - even if the newly created low paying jobs are better paid (a major assumption, that), the switch from mid-skilled and mid-paid jobs to low-paid jobs could be quite consistent with falling demand.Em and Pat https://www.blogger.com/profile/13845965587868431005noreply@blogger.com