Signs the Economy is Bad: February 21, 2014 edition

Welcome to another edition of "Signs the Economy is Bad" here at The Itinerant Librarian. This is the semi-regular (as in when I have time and/or feel like doing it) feature where I scour the Internet in search of the oh so subtle hints that the economy is bad. Sure, pundits may say things are getting better, but what do they know? And to show not all is bad, once in a while we look at how good the uber rich have it.  

I did have to do quite a bit of scouring this week. It is kind of nice that it has been a bit quiet on this front. On the other hand, we do have some stuff about the uber rich, so let's have a look.

• I did not find too many items this week, but it does not mean the poor just vanished for a week. If anything, the poor in this country basically keep getting a bad punch after another bad punch. As Jenn writes, "You can have all the assumptions in the world about how they got there, how the feel, how much they “take,” but you can never really know their true story – humans deserve compassion." Or as that wise preacher once told me, "There but for [insert your deity of choice], go I." Post via Crooks and Liars, and it is one worth reading.
• Meanwhile, the problem of income inequality continues as revealed by a new report from the Economic Policy Institute. The researchers state that “our study shows that this one percent economy is not just a national story but is evident in every state, and every region.” So when some talking head pundit in the news says that things are peachy, you feel free to check out this report. The evidence is there. The economy is bad, and people are suffering. You can get some highlights in this story from Common Dreams.

However, not everybody has it bad. The one-percenters are clearly doing just fine, even if it is at the expense of the rest of us.

• In New Jersey, some Catholic schools have to close because things are bad; money is tight. Well, the money is tight for some people. For the Archbishop of Newark, happy days are here as the diocese let's the good times roll by building him a palatial home. It's not just Christian prosperity gospel preachers who are raking in big bucks and benefits. Roman Catholic higher ups can rake in the money and benefits just as well from the suckers worshipers willing to turn over their incomes give in the collection plate for them. Story via The New York Times. A hat tip to Boing Boing. 
• Now, when you are rich, you certainly flaunt it. We get, for instance, "rich people willing to pay $60 for a pound of coffee , just to remind themselves how rich they are." You know those little "cute" K-cups? The cost is about $60 a pound so you can get the "convenience" of having a single serving of coffee. There is even one asshat consumer, according to the story, who owns two of them, one for each of his homes. Story via The Stranger. Actually, this reminds me of a certain other kitchen appliance pretentious snobs were known to buy (link to YouTube video).