The writer is a Visiting Scholar at Johns Hopkins SAIS, a Non-Resident Fellow at Bruegel and a Visiting Professor at NCAER. He is currently writing a book entitled ‘A Defence of the Liberal Economic Order’
Imagine that across the length and breadth of America, working-class wages grew much faster than the incomes of millionaires. Rustbelt states started catching up with their more prosperous coastal counterparts. But these developments came with a caveat: greater income inequality in Beverly Hills. The pay cheque gap between Leonardo DiCaprio and his supporting cast increased. Superhero sequels crushed indie movies at the box office.
Taken as a whole, these developments would be cause for joyous celebration. Few would shed a tear for the Golden Globe nominees falling further behind their Oscar-winning colleagues.