Since the 1970s, the gap in incomes between those who earn the most and those who earn the least has increased markedly. Some have described this as a “hollowing out” of the middle class and everyone, it seems, agrees it’s a bad thing. But why is it occurring at all? The answer is that the US economy has been undergoing fundamental changes, changes that benefit workers with skills and smarts, but leave behind those with lesser educations. … Much of the blame for these changes goes to technology: Many lower-skilled jobs have disappeared, replaced by machines, while at the same time those with higher levels of education are able to … Continue reading Tom Keane