The superrich are destroying opportunity

This is in response to two opinions offered Nov. 10 by Paul O. Bischoff and Jan Shaw. First, Mr. Bischoff, your views are incredibly out of touch. You claim that the "Republican landslide was a vote against President Obama's neo-Marxism cloaked within an extremist liberalism." President Obama has hardly imposed policies that could be considered socialist, much less neo-Marxist. Despite increasing national debt, Obama has implemented corporate and middle class tax cuts during his presidency. Corporate after-tax profits have increased 171 percent during Obama's tenure, which begs the question: What about this screams Marxism? Banks that nearly destroyed the U.S. economy continue their stranglehold through mergers, while giving outrageous executive bonuses.

As for Ms. Shaw's letter, opinions like yours perpetuate the ever-widening wealth gap in this country. How can one can look at the fact that 1 percent of Americans control over a third of the wealth and take home nearly 18 percent of total income, and say "class warfare" is keeping people poor? You argue that food service jobs are for teenagers, but the median age of fast food workers is 29, and they are being paid on average under $9 an hour - hardly enough to support a family.

Wal-Mart employs about 1.5 million people in the U.S., and the average worker there makes about the same. Meanwhile, the Walton family is worth over $150 billion, more than the bottom 33 percent of Americans combined. The increasing cost of higher education limits opportunities to specialize, and it is delusional to think that everyone in this country is afforded an equal opportunity. For some, these jobs are their only option. You insult thinking people by saying class warfare is destroying opportunities; it is actually people like the Waltons, among myriad other complex reasons, who do so.

Ryan Sparks

Arlington Heights