A world divided - Elites descend on Swiss Alps

[cronus]

http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-davos- ... KKCN0UW005

A world divided - Elites descend on Swiss Alps amid rising inequality

Politicians and business leaders gathering in the Swiss Alps this week face an increasingly divided world, with the poor falling further behind the super-rich and political fissures in the United States, Europe and the Middle East running deeper than at any time in decades.

Just 62 people, 53 of them men, own as much wealth as the poorest half of the entire world population and the richest 1 percent own more than the other 99 percent put together, anti-poverty charity Oxfam said on Monday.

Significantly, the wealth gap is widening faster than anyone anticipated, with the 1 percent overtaking the rest one year earlier than Oxfam had predicted only a year ago.

Rising inequality and a widening trust gap between people and their political leaders are big challenges for the global elite as they converge on Davos for the annual World Economic Forum, which runs from Jan. 20 to 23.

But the divisions go far beyond those that exist between the haves and have-nots. In the Middle East, the divide between Shi'ites and Sunnis has reached crisis point, with Iran and Saudi Arabia jostling openly for influence in a region reeling from war and the barbarism of Islamic extremists.

The conflicts there have spilled over into Europe, causing deep ideological rifts over how to handle the worst refugee crisis since World War Two and - with Britain threatening to leave the European Union - raising doubts about the future of Europe's six-decade push towards ever closer integration.

The shock emergence of Donald Trump as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination has exposed a gaping political divide in the United States, stirring anxiety among Washington's allies at a time of global turmoil.

Among the key figures in Davos, will be U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John Kerry, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the foreign ministers of both Iran and Saudi Arabia.

Canada's new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be on hand, as will Britain's David Cameron and Mario Draghi at a time when a new transatlantic monetary policy divide is opening up between his loosening European Central Bank and a tightening U.S. Federal Reserve.

Celebrities will also be out in force, including film stars Leonardo Di Caprio and Kevin Spacey.

FUELLING POPULISTS

Edelman's annual "Trust Barometer" survey shows a record gap this year in trust between the informed publics and mass populations in many countries, driven by income inequality and divergent expectations of the future. The gap is the largest in the United States, followed by the UK, France and India.

"The consequence of this is populism - exemplified by Trump and Le Pen," Richard Edelman, president and CEO of Edelman, told Reuters, referring to French far-right leader Marine Le Pen, whose National Front has surged ahead of traditional parties in opinion polls.

(continued)

[pErvinalia]

The poor are slackers. It's just natural selection at work.

[cronus]

The poor are slackers. It's just natural selection at work.

[MrJonno]

Bear in mind the 1% owning 99% of the wealth in the world includes almost everyone on this forum. We are the elite these people are just the elite of elite

[cronus]

Bear in mind the 1% owning 99% of the wealth in the world includes almost everyone on this forum. We are the elite these people are just the elite of elite

I'm not gonna be happy until they've built me my mansion on Elysium.

[MrJonno]

The fact we are the 1% doesn't really make us really rich, it just shows how poor most the world is and how lucky we are

[pErvinalia]

Bear in mind the 1% owning 99% of the wealth in the world includes almost everyone on this forum. We are the elite these people are just the elite of elite

I couldn't find the figure for 1%, but to be in the top 0.7% you need at least 1 million US net worth. So you're likely wrong, as usual.

Edit: found it. US$760,000.

[Hermit]

Bear in mind the 1% owning 99% of the wealth in the world includes almost everyone on this forum. We are the elite these people are just the elite of elite

I couldn't find the figure for 1%, but to be in the top 0.7% you need at least 1 million US net worth. So you're likely wrong, as usual.

Edit: found it. US$760,000.

A year ago Oxfam, using data from Credit Suisse’s (then) latest global wealth report said if your net worth is 2.7 million US dollars you are part of the top 1%.

[MrJonno]

You need to earn £21000 , $30k odd to be in the top 1%, as for assets £500k would seem pretty average for a British citizen

[laklak]

Probably going to discuss climate change, after flying in on their private Leers.

[piscator]

Don't confuse yourself. Whether or not anyone flies anywhere in a jet has absolutely zero to do with whether anthropogenic climate change is real or not.

[pErvinalia]

You need to earn £21000 , $30k odd to be in the top 1%, as for assets £500k would seem pretty average for a British citizen

They're talking about wealth, not earnings. Keep up. You think " most people on this forum" clear £500k?? You really are just a random thought generator, aren't you?

[pErvinalia]

Median HOUSEHOLD wealth in the Britain is roughly £220k.

http://touchstoneblog.org.uk/2015/05/we ... nequality/

[pErvinalia]

Median UK adult wealth is £83k.

http://news.sky.com/story/1568838/uk-ri ... alth-chart

[pErvinalia]

Bear in mind the 1% owning 99% of the wealth in the world includes almost everyone on this forum. We are the elite these people are just the elite of elite

I couldn't find the figure for 1%, but to be in the top 0.7% you need at least 1 million US net worth. So you're likely wrong, as usual.

Edit: found it. US$760,000.

A year ago Oxfam, using data from Credit Suisse’s (then) latest global wealth report said if your net worth is 2.7 million US dollars you are part of the top 1%.

They got that wrong. I read the credit Suisse report. It's the figure I quoted above.