# Why has so much power/influence left labor and gone to capital, at least in the US

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-has-so-much-power-influence-left-labor-and-gone-to-capital-at-least-in-the-us/575656
**Category:** Great Debates
**Created:** [March 22, 2011, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-has-so-much-power-influence-left-labor-and-gone-to-capital-at-least-in-the-us/575656 "2011-03-22T22:25:52Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Showing post:** 30

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### Author: ![emacknight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ec8ea/32.png) [@emacknight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emacknight)
#### Post date: [March 24, 2011, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-has-so-much-power-influence-left-labor-and-gone-to-capital-at-least-in-the-us/575656/30 "2011-03-24T00:15:13Z")

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> [@septimus](#):
>
> One of the most important explanations is being overlooked here.
> 
> Income sources include workers, and the rent of land and owned capital. In a primitive society the human workers themselves comprised most of the wealth; a semi-skilled worker in a village of 100 might expect to get 1/100 of the income. But with increasing industrialization, more and more of the total wealth takes the form of invested capital, scarce land, and very skilled specialist workers. It is straightforward to conclude that unskilled laborers “deserve” far less than their proportional share.

That was extremely well said.

It’s weird to consider that workers are sharing their wealth with the machines they use.

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