The wealthy prosper, the rest suffer

Many business executives portray the Obama administration as the "most anti-business" in history. Data tell a different story. Bloomberg News says corporate profits have grown by 171 percent under Obama administration, the most in the post-war era.

According to data compiled by Bloomberg, profits are at their highest level relative to the size of the economy since the government began keeping records in 1947. Measured by the size of the economy, profits are more than twice as high as their peak during President Ronald Reagan's administration and 50 percent greater than during the late 1990s Internet boom. Average annual corporate profit growth under Obama is the highest since 1900, whereas profit growth declined during both Bush presidencies.

Unfortunately, this profit deluge has not been shared by workers, whose wages, as a percentage of the economy, have fallen to all-time lows. Workers also got dinged by the recent increase in the payroll tax.

Do our political elites rule at the behest of the rich and powerful? After the greatest economic collapse since the Great Depression, homeowners, working people and the poor are expected to suffer the most. The financial industry elites that caused the collapse have become even richer while the rest of us fall behind.

JOHN LUCAS

Modesto