From: bhv@areaplg2.corp.mot.com (Bronis Vidugiris)
Subject: Re: Back Again To Father Notification...
Organization: Motorola, CCR&D, CORP, Schaumburg, IL
Date: Mon, 9 Nov 1992 19:32:47 GMT

In article <1992Nov7.185302.22309@u.washington.edu> rons@hardy.u.washington.edu (Ronald Schoenberg) writes:
)In article <1992Nov6.171532.17207@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> bhv@areaplg2.corp.mot.com (Bronis Vidugiris) writes:

)>"Despite the fact that many people believe that women own or control most of
)>the wealth in the country, the data show that 60 percent of the top
)>wealtholders were men.  In fact, it was not until women were grouped at 70
)>years of age that they exceeded the number and percentage of wealthy men -
)>possibly because they had outlived the men in their families.

)Hmmm, so you're telling me that all those capitalists who make all the
)decisions affecting workers lives - where factories are to go, what
)kinds of goods they'll produce, and so on, are mostly women?

Nope.  I'm saying that the available data on 'top wealtholders' shows
that 60% of them are men, and 40% of them are women.  Also, looking at
the 'net assets' of the 'upper crust' (as defined a little later) the F/M
ratio for total 'net worth' was about 75%.

This data on 'net worth' was only for people with gross assets of
$500,000 or more and was estimated from estate tax return samples.
You can find it in the source I mentioned before, or in 'Statistical
Abstracts of the US', along with the primary source (which I don't have),
but which was cited as 'Statistics of Income Bulletin', Spring 1990, US
Internal Revenue Service.

)  I
)suppose it is women controlling the big studios we have to blame for
)all those hollywood movies stereotyping women as bimbos with large
)breasts?  Or for the great predominance of male buddy movies without
)any women in them at all?  Or women for deciding that we should
)invade Iraq to protect their oil investments?

Ah yes - the 'finger of blame'.  Actually, I see no reason to be sexist
and to single any one particular sex as the 'guilty party' for the
problems in our society, or any reason to portray one sex as being
particularly virtuous and responsible for the 'good things' our society
happens to do.

)  If women do indeed
)control as much wealth as you say it's news to all of the people I
)know involved in political/economic/social science and I think it
)would be important that you should let them know.

It shouldn't be 'news' to them if they looked at some of the figures.
Maybe there is a small skew towards the radical left in the people you know
:-)

)Avoiding taxes is a popular middle class activity, and it appears that
)putting property in the name of one's wife is a part of that.  But it
)certainly doesn't mean that they control it.

I'd say that the best measure of 'control' is what happens when push comes
to shove and the parties divorce, myself.  This would seem to be difficult
to collect data on, however.  I'd say that the issue of 'control' is rather
problematical in an intact marriage. In many cases, though, the issue of
'control' is moot - "Proportionately, the largetst single wealthy group
consisted of single women."  [from my 'Times of Change' as I mentioned in my
previous post.] 
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