Income is actually a more sensible measure because it gives a better idea of your “lifetime wealth”, … than your current wealth.
Consumption is an even better measure, since people tend to smooth it both over time (e.g. by saving or taking loans as appropriate) and across individuals in any given social group (by engaging in informal social insurance, especially in poorer countries with no formalized welfare provision).
That’s a good point, but not very useful for GWWC. What was your consumption last year? It would take people a while to figure it out, but almost everyone knows their income off the top of their heads. GWWC’s goal is to make a salient point that westerners are rich. An American making $30,000 a year doesn’t feel rich, but they actually are rich, rich enough to improve many lives of the global poor without a serious deduction in their standard of living. Income and consumption (relative to other humans) rarely differ from each other enough to change that conclusion.
Consumption is an even better measure, since people tend to smooth it both over time (e.g. by saving or taking loans as appropriate) and across individuals in any given social group (by engaging in informal social insurance, especially in poorer countries with no formalized welfare provision).
That’s a good point, but not very useful for GWWC. What was your consumption last year? It would take people a while to figure it out, but almost everyone knows their income off the top of their heads. GWWC’s goal is to make a salient point that westerners are rich. An American making $30,000 a year doesn’t feel rich, but they actually are rich, rich enough to improve many lives of the global poor without a serious deduction in their standard of living. Income and consumption (relative to other humans) rarely differ from each other enough to change that conclusion.
Correct.
Notice the goal: to make a point. Notice what it is not: to gain understanding by exploring the complexities of “wealth”.