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Upwardly mobile America: are we in a new 'gilded age' where the rich are doing well and the poor and middle class treading water? The Wall Street Journal's Stephen Moore looks at the numbers to find out what's happening with the American dream.

Article Excerpt
With the U.S. economy in a fragile state, politicians are again debating the age-old question: Should Americas economic policies be geared to increasing the rate of economic growth or to promoting economic fairness through income redistribution? During this election year, some have argued that the last quarter-century has given rise to a new "gilded age" in which the privileged have done supremely well but the lower income earners have made no progress. A different view sees an upwardly mobile society in which those who get ahead fastest do so through their hard work, risk-taking, and grit. Let's find out what's actually happened.

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Q Has the gap between the rich and the poor been getting larger?

A The answer to this question is that it depends on bow you measure things. If we concentrate on the share of wealth that is earned by the richest 1, 5, or 10 percent, then yes, overtime, the rich have corralled a larger share of the wealth. For example, in 1980 the wealthiest 1 percent and 5 percent of Americans earned 8 percent and 19 percent of the nation's total income respectively. But by 2006 those percentages had jumped to 22 percent and 36 percent. The richest Americans now earn a larger share of income than at anytime since the Roaring '20s. It is also true that over the past quarter-century the share of income that has gone to the lowest income group (the bottom 20 percent) has fallen from 15 percent to 12 percent. So on this basis it would appear that "economic fairness" has declined in America.

Q Have the income gains by the rich come at the expense Of the middle class and the poor?

A Since 1983, every income group has seen an...

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