Political Theory

I'm not a political theorist. But if I were one, I'd be thinking about theories that focus on the strengthening/creation of a middle class.

Rawls focuses on political legitimacy arising from whether a society helps improve the relative positions of the least-well-off. (Liberal)

Nozick focuses on political legitimacy of transactions and the process by which goods are acquired. (Libertarian)

I suspect keeping and maintaining a large middle class is the key to preserving democracy and individual rights. It is important for a society to largely be comprised of self-succifient citizens. Our society is growing too stratified. The middle class is hollowing out. If roughly 47% of American households do not pay taxes, we have essentially created an underclass. We risk becoming a society of patrons and patronage, whereby the rich essentially "buy off" the poor by giving them things life welfare and medical care and the basic necessities, but not access to the tools of real wealth-creation such as home ownership and affordable education.

I need to think about this more...