What happened in 1973

The rich get richer

America underwent a radical shift after WWII (America after WWII). It turned into a consumption economy (How America turned into a consumption culture). All of this created opportunities and growth for decades, but everything came to a head in 1973.

When growth finally slowed in the early 1970's, the government stepped in to keep the good times rolling.

"Quantitative easing both prevented economic collapse and boosted asset prices, a boon for those who owned them – mostly rich people."

This is an important point, because prior to this time The defining characteristic of economics in the 1950s is that the country got rich by making the poor less poor..

That wasn't the case in the 1970's when true inequality began to take shape.

"Tax cuts over the last 20 years have predominantly gone to those with higher incomes. People with higher incomes send their kids to the best colleges. Those kids can go on to earn higher incomes and invest in corporate debt that will be backstopped by the Fed, own stocks that will be supported by various government policies, and so on. "