[webmaven]

> [F]or my friends and colleagues from the 10%, discussing income inequality has become a sort of social signal to show that you yourself are too smart to be poor, but you still feel bad for all the unfortunate people that were left behind by capitalism.

> Does discussing inequality so much become a self fulfilling prophecy for the low-income strata? Does it simply benefit the current winners of the status quo?

I suppose it depends on whether the discussion stops at the "Oh Noes" level, or if it continues to discussing how the 10% (or the 1%, for that matter) gets co-opted by the 0.01%, and on to various proposed remedies[0], and then on to more explicitly political activities such as support (in whatever form) for specific policies, organizations, and candidates.

[0] Campaign finance reform is probably the ur-remedy that enables most others.