Great read, learned a lot. This book focuses on how inequality affects the mind, and changes the way we make decisions. The thesis is that those at the bottom end of unequal societies feel much more stress, leading them to focus on short term gains, less on the future, and generally act irrationally.
I the author overplays his around many causal links, but that’s not enough to take away from the good ideas in this book.
Most useful for me is that this provides an economist’s lens to understand my father. Certain behaviors of his baffle me. He has little trust in others, no faith in the future, and believes in quite a few conspiracy theories. Linking these beliefs with his background and experience help me understand where he’s coming from, even if it’s difficult to naturally empathize.
I can’t escape the feeling that there is something dangerous in the thesis, true or not. ‘Poor people have poor ways’ is an adage in my family, and this book provides more evidence that this is the case, even if the ‘poor ways’ are environmentally caused. Definitely food for thought.