The Velvet Rope Economy

How Inequality Became Big Business

De: Nelson D. Schwartz

Narrado por: Jason Culp

From New York Times business reporter Nelson D. Schwartz comes a gripping investigation of how a virtual velvet rope divides Americans in every arena of life, creating a friction-free existence for those with money on one side and a Darwinian struggle for the middle class on the other side.

In nearly every realm of daily life--from health care to education, highways to home security--there is an invisible velvet rope that divides how Americans live. On one side of the rope, for a price, red tape is cut, lines are jumped, appointments are secured, and doors are opened. On the other side, middle- and working-class Americans fight to find an empty seat on the plane, a place in line with their kids at the amusement park, a college acceptance, or a hospital bed.
We are all aware of the gap between the rich and everyone else, but when we weren't looking, business innovators stepped in to exploit it, shifting services away from the masses and finding new ways to profit by serving the privileged. And as decision-makers and corporate leaders increasingly live on the friction-free side of the velvet rope, they are less inclined to change--or even notice--the obstacles everyone else must contend with. Schwartz's "must read" book takes us on a behind-the-scenes tour of this new reality and shows the toll the velvet rope divide takes on society.

Great book!

This is a wonderful reminded of the U.S. Society and Globalization classes I took so many years ago. Lots of facts, but not overwhelming. Everyone should read/listen to this book!

Two Weak Examples

Closed Shopping Malls and Ruby Tuesday Restaurants were weak examples. Other than those two problems, the book was insightful and important. Better to learn now what economic choices we have made rather than risk a Lenin-like revolution in the United States. Excellent read.

Flabbergasted

As I listened to the book, I went through many emotions. This is a must read if you are looking to grow your business, or if you want to understand the disparity between groups of people.

Eye-opening book

Money talks this book opens up your eyes to how having a little bit of money i.e. a lot of money makes life easier. One of the reasons I stack bitcoin every day.

Eye-Opening

The narrator is engaging and able to bring quoted characters to life. The book content is eye-opening. Once you hear about the pernicious applications hidden in plain sight, you see the velvet rope everywhere. It’s a great read that shows how the country was and the small, but impactful, players across industries that influenced the classist divides today.

Revealing

For about half of Americans the information in this book will seem welcome. The other half might start considering revolution. Let's hope they get out and vote instead.

Great read!

This book does an outstanding job showing how far-reaching the effects of inequality really are. Highly recommend this book!

eye opening

I expected to hear about first class on airplanes, but I kept realizing how experiences I've had fit into this pattern of inequality.
I'm very grateful for the last chapter and I hope that more companies follow the examples set by the likes of Southwest and the GB Packers.

Truth be told

awesome awakening. The author is highly commended for writing this book. it is eye opening.

Wow, this book was good.

I was watching a news program and saw the author of this book being interviewed about the early disparities in testing for covid-19. I am a family physician and wondered why entire asymptomatic NBA teams could get tests for the virus and I couldn’t get any tests for sick patients. This book explains why. It explains a lot about how businesses and schools have changed over the years to benefit the wealthiest amongst us. The book also does a good job of explaining how these changes erode at the middle class and make it harder for the poor to better their lot in life. It was fascinating! There apparently are many aspects of life that are better for the top 1% that the rest of us know nothing about. I HIGHLY recommend this book!