On Lug Wrenches and Chopsticks

Pittsburgh, PA. Brown University, where I received a master’s degree a few years ago, is among our nation’s elite institutions. The undergraduate school is consistently ranked in the top twenty in the nation, and the student body is comprised of individuals from the highest echelon of American society. More of their undergraduate students belong in the top 1 percent of the income distribution than the entire bottom 60 percent. For context, the median household income in Pennsylvania is about $64,000 per year. It takes approximately $600,000 a year just to enter the ranks of the 1%.