rich vs poor gap, protect from fall down economic ladder

Bernanke warns of growing rich-poor gap
By UPI
Feb 6, 2007, 19:30 GMT



OMAHA, NE, United States (UPI) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke Tuesday warned about the growing U.S. gap between rich and poor and called for improved education and training.

'A substantial body of research demonstrates that investments in education and training pay high rates of return both to individuals and to the society at large,' he told the Greater Omaha (Neb.) Chamber of Commerce.

Bernanke noted 'inequality in economic outcomes' was a byproduct of improved U.S. standards of living.

While economic opportunity should be 'as equal as possible,' economic outcomes 'should be linked to the contributions each person makes to the economy,' he said.

But he said society had a responsibility to give people 'some insurance against the most adverse economic outcomes, especially those arising from events largely outside the person`s control.'

No one should be allowed to 'slip too far down the economic ladder, especially for reasons beyond his or her control,' he said.

He said the growing income gap might make some people less willing to accept the economic dynamism that prompts factory closings. But he warned politicians not to enact protectionist measures to control labor markets or international trade.