I recently appeared on CNBC with my respected colleague Dr. Christopher Metzler of Georgetown University. The point of discussion was the wealth distribution in America and whether the rich should pay more in taxes than the poor. While my personal point of view was argued on the show, I wanted to hit this issue and explain why one could argue that it's not a sin for the rich to be taxed a bit more heavily here in the United States.

Most of the arguments for not increasing taxes on the rich usually go back to "trickle down economics." This argument is one in which we believe that by cutting taxes on the wealthy and corporations, we can stimulate business, create jobs and ultimately help the poor when the wealth trickles down to those at the bottom. The problem with trickle down economics is that it usually doesn't work. While some degree of business stimulation is certainly good for an economy, the fundamental assumptions of American capitalism argue that corporations should do what they can to keep the trickle from ever occurring: Labor unions should be undermined and wages should be minimized, all for the sake of making shareholders as wealthy as possible.

One of the problems in the United States is that over the past 20 years, 94 percent of the wealth created in this country went to the top 20 percent of Americans. The top 1 percent of Americans sucked up 42 percent of our country's wealth. This clear imbalance of wealth makes the United States second to only Switzerland when it comes to having the worst wealth imbalance of any industrialized nation on earth. This is a threat to our national security, since wealth imbalances lead to internal conflict (at the very worst resulting in civil wars) and economic decay. Before long, we can end up in a situation similar to countries like Nigeria, where the middle class has become virtually nonexistent in spite of the country's vast oil reserves.


Our nation's fiscal situation is only set to get worse, as our deficit has climbed the $13 trillion mark. Social Security is dying, and our national productivity is dropping just as fast. This means that over the next 30 years, our country is going to have fewer resources to handle more financial obligations and an aging population. So, while our nation suffers financially, one could argue that those who are spending money on private jets and $50,000 vacations should be taxed one or two percent more to help out with the high cost of running America. The poor could be asked to pay more taxes, too, if it weren't for the fact that the rich seem to hoard nearly all the country's wealth already.

Fair and equitable wealth distribution in the United States is an important part of our nation's economic survival. If we don't do this one the right way, we will find that our nation suffers more deeply because of it moving forward. There's nothing wrong with sharing your wealth, especially if it contributes to overall social stability.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here.