June 13, 2019

For the Rich, the Great Recession Was Just a Blip

Matt Yglesias points us to the latest Federal Reserve calculations of net worth, and as usual, we can say that the post-Reagan era has been a great time to be rich in America. Here’s the net worth of the top 1 percent:

That’s an increase of more than 4 percent per year above and beyond inflation. The upper middle class has done OK during the same period, increasing its net worth by about 2 percent per year.

And the bottom 50 percent? Their net worth has declined. The basic story is that they didn’t have much to begin with and they lost it all during the housing bust. Literally, they lost it all: their collective net worth hit zero. They’ve been building their net worth back since then, but they still haven’t reached the level they were at in 1990, let alone surpassed it.

And the other income groups? They all lost a bit during the housing bust but made it back within three years. They’ve been building ever since, and at such a fast rate that the recession is now just a blip in the rear-view mirror.

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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