人为地控制贫富差距只会有害无益

　　The shift away from manufacturing is also a factor. Service workers span the gamut from hotel maids to brain surgeons, while the pay range is generally narrower in the manufacturing sector. States that are industrial tend to have more equal distributions of income. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that about 10 percent of workers in Arizona, Louisiana and New York have manufacturing jobs, whereas in more equal states like Indiana and Wisconsin the figure is 23 percent.

　　劳动力从制造领域的转出也是原因之一。服务领域的工作者可既包括酒店服务生又包括脑科手术医生。而制造业中的工资差别可就小得多了，因而工业州的收入分配更趋于平均化。劳动统计局的数据表明，在亚利桑那州、路易斯安那州和纽约州10%的劳动者从事制造业工作，而在收入较平均的州，如印地安那州和威斯康星州，这个数字是23%。

　　Also, in the seven states with the greatest income inequality, more than 80 percent of the population lives in or near metropolitan areas. In states with the most equality, only about half does. If we were to turn back the clock 100 years and again become a largely rural nation, we might not see such large income disparities, but that's because America's cities are our engines of wealth and offer greater prospects for those who succeed.

　　另外，在收入差距大的7个州80%的人口居住在大城市里或附近。而在收入最平均的州，居住在城里的居民只占约一半。如果时光倒流100年，我们还是一个广大的农业国时，我们可能看不到这巨大的贫富差距。但正是美国的这些城市才造就了财富，才为成功者提供了更美好的前程。

　　Inequality is not inequity. Artificial efforts to try to curb wealth gaps invariably do more harm than good. Heavier taxation might narrow the division between rich and poor, but it would be a hollow triumph if it stifled the economy. What Americans ought to care most about is maintaining our growth, not the red herring of gaps in income and wealth.

　　收入的不平均并不代表不平等。人为地控制贫富差距只会有害无益。加大税收力度也许会缩小贫富间的差距，但如果它抑制了经济的发展，那也只是毫无意义的成就。美国民众最该关心的应是保持经济的增长，而不是将注意力转移到收入与财富的差距上。

本文选自《北外网院》的博客，点击查看博客原文