The standard economic indicators provide a picture of progress in America. The stock market is at record highs and the unemployment rate is at decade lows. Unfortunately, it seems ordinary people aren’t feeling the benefits of this progress as their wages have yet to rebound to prior standards even while the richest among us reap the rewards of a bounding economy. While there are some who live by the phrase “we got ours,” there are likewise a great deal of wealthy Americans who recognize the disparity felt in the nation’s economic recuperation.
A group of Patriotic Millionaires have scribed a letter to Congress asking for a hike in their taxes, a raise in the minimum wage, and the elimination of lobbyist money from politics.
This, on it’s face, appears directly at odds with their utility; taking money from their pockets. But these patriotic millionaires recognize that – as hedge fund manager Rod Garrett put it – “rich people are not the cause of a robust economy; they are the result of a robust economy.” Now they seek to give back to the society that has allowed them to succeed so fruitfully and in turn help others to succeed just as they have.
The group, who has dubbed themselves the Patriotic Millionaires, has found pushback from their wealthy friends and co-workers, but hope to spend their millions advertising in television, print and Web to promote an increase in the minimum wage along with other items in their selfless agenda.