A central concern for those in the Occupy movement -- that the
economic system in the U.S. is rigged in favor of the well-off -- has
been corroborated by a major new survey of developed nations.
When
it comes to social justice -- defined here as the ability each
individual has to participate in the market society, regardless of their
social status -- the United States ranks near the bottom of 31
developed countries, the Thursday report from Bertelsmann Foundation found.
It's
one thing if you live in a market economy where everyone has the same
shot at success. It's quite another if fortune favors the fortunate.
And the new survey found that when it comes to "equal opportunities for
self-realization," the U.S. ranks 27 out of 31 Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development member states, well behind not
just Northern European countries like Norway and Denmark, but even
countries like Hungary, Poland, Italy and France. The only countries
whose citizens fare even worse are Greece, Chile, Mexico and Turkey.
For more: New Social Justice Index Places U.S. Near Bottom