Americans do not go in for envy. The gap between rich and poor is bigger than in any other advanced country, but most people are unconcerned. Whereas Europeans fret about the way the economic pie is divided, Americans want to join the rich, not soak them. Eight out of ten, more than anywhere else, believe that though you may start poor, if you work hard, you can make pots of money. It is a central part of the American Dream.
The political consensus, therefore, has sought to pursue economic growth rather than the redistribution of income, in keeping with John Kennedy’s adage that "a rising tide lifts all boats." The tide has been rising fast recently. Thanks to a jump in productivity growth after 1995, America’s economy has outpaced other rich countries’ for a decade. Its workers now produce over 30% more each hour they work than ten years ago. In the late 1990s everybody shared in this boom. Though incomes were rising fastest at the top, all workers’ wages far outpaced inflation.
美国人心态很平和。他们并不太在意各自收入间的差别，尽管事实上没有哪个别的发达国家的贫富差距像美国这么大。这和欧洲人截然不同。欧洲人对全民收入的分配很是上心。美国人则不一样，他们是想要成为富人，而对打垮富人并无兴趣。十有八九的国民坚信即使出身贫寒，只要通过努力，也能飞黄腾达。这不正是美国梦的精髓所在吗?
于是美国政界一致认为，与其回过头来均分财富，还不如实现经济的增长。这也和美国前总统约翰.肯尼迪的那句有名的“水涨船高”不谋而合。美国经济这十几年的增长速度不可谓不快。随着1995年以来生产率的飞涨，美国经济的发展十二年来一直领先于其他强国，如今的生产效率是十年前的1.3倍。在上世纪的最后十年，所有公民都从中尝到了甜头。尽管那些高收入者获益更大，但所有人的工资增长幅度都远胜于通货膨胀的速度。