Inequality Blues

In the Wall St. Journal today, Bryan Caplan gave a mixed review of a book called The Happiness Equation, which delves into the strange world of "happiness research", which I often find puzzling to read about - so puzzling it makes me unhappy - so I don't read about happiness research much.

Nonetheless, Caplan zooms in on the author's point that "income comparison" makes people unhappy. You know, the idea is that I'm unhappy because you make more money than I do. And it turns out, that if you look around, it's almost always true that somebody makes more money that you do.

Caplan then makes the point that the solution to such unhappiness doesn't have to be redistribution of income.

Yes, you could fight inequality of income. But you could just as easily fight comparison of income. Instead of praising those who "raise awareness" about inequality, perhaps we should shame them, like the office gossip, for spreading envy and discontent.

Purveyors of alleged awareness
are always seeking out unfairness -
real or imagined, it doesn't matter,
as long as it leads to envious chatter.