Joseph E. Stiglitz
Inequality is not an inevitable byproduct of free markets but a deliberate political outcome engineered by the wealthy to extract resources from everyone else.
The most affluent individuals accumulate vast fortunes not by creating new economic value, but by manipulating political systems to extract wealth from others through monopolies, tax loopholes, and favorable regulations.
The widespread assumption that enriching the wealthy will ultimately benefit the broader population has proven historically false, as rising top incomes have coincided with severe wage stagnation for the middle class.
Deregulation enabled the financial sector to engage in predatory lending and reckless securitization, allowing them to privatize massive profits while forcing the public to absorb their catastrophic losses.