Inequality in America : What Role for Human Capital Policies ?

Inequality in America: What Role for Human Capital Policies? edited by Benjamin M. Friedman (MIT, 369 pp., $40). Forty years ago, most experts on inequality believed poverty itself was the cause of poverty--the result of discrimination and lack of money. The solution was, therefore, to compensate for discrimination through affirmative action and to transfer money to the poor through welfare programs. After the failure of that disastrous experiment, a new generation began to see poverty as a symptom of complex social dysfunctions. Despite some lingering disputes over racial discrimination, most scholars now believe the way to alleviate poverty is to enhance the productive capacities of individuals.