Alain Sherter interviews Thomas Piketty

For a long time, America defined itself as a counter-model to the sort of patrimonial societies associated with "old Europe." And it's a bit paradoxical that the U.S. is now reaching the kind of inequality that we saw in pre-World War I Europe. The structure of that inequality is different -- today's inequality in the U.S. relies more on very high managerial compensation and less on high levels of inherited wealth. But it could be that in the future you're going to combine both. 

So, yes, this should be a matter of concern in the U.S. To some extent it already is a matter of concern, but we need to look more at other countries' experience.

The real issue is that economic disparity leads to social, political and economic privilege and power, which is the actual inequality that matters it is in effect state capture by a class in order to serve class interest. In this sense, capitalism is antithetical to democracy.

CBS MoneyWatch
Economist says U.S. inequality reaching "spectacular" heights
Alain Sherter
(h/t Mark Thoma at Economist's View)