In 2007, Americans are evenly divided — according to data from the Pew Research Center — on whether America is unevenly divided economically.

When the Gallup organization asked in 1988, "Is America divided into haves and have-nots?" 26% answered Yes.

When the Pew organization posed up the question in 2001, 44% said Yes.

In 2007, 48% said Yes.

Those answering No (America is not divided into 'haves' and 'have-nots') fell from 71% in 1988 to 53% in 2001, then to 48% in 2007.

Respondents answering Don't know, remained steady at 3-4% in all three surveys.

Asked, "If you had to choose, are you in the Haves, Have-nots or Neither/Don't know," in 1988 59% classed themselves as Haves.

In 2001 that number slipped to 52%.

In 2007 45% identified themselves as haves."

The number self-identified as have-nots rose from 17% in 1988, to 32% in 2001 and 34% in 2007.

Pew analysts write:

The increased prevalence of both views — that the country is increasingly divided along economic lines and that a given individual is on the wrong side of that divide — finds support in national economic data. As numerous studies have demonstrated in recent years, income gains over the last few decades have been heavily concentrated at the very top of the income distribution. For example, in an update of their earlier study of long-term U.S. income trends, economists Piketty and Saez compute that the share of income going to families in the top 1% of the income scale has doubled from 8% in 1980 to 16% in 2004 even excluding capital gains. (For a review of other recent studies see an earlier Pew commentary, "Pinched Pocketbooks: Do Average Americans Spot Something That Most Economists Miss?")

Meanwhile, Congressional Budget Office data Historical Effective Federal Tax Rates: 1979 to 2004 (excel spreadsheet) show that despite the increase in the number of families with two or more earners and widespread income gains in the latter half of the 1990s, families in the middle fifth of the income distribution realized only a modest $6,600 increase in annual income between 1988 and 2004, while the top 1% of families saw their incomes rise from $839,100 to an average $1,259,700. Recently released Census Bureau data show that in 2006, median household income adjusted for inflation was still 2.1% below its 1999 level. More sensationally, Bloomberg.com recently reported on a study showing that "top private-equity and hedge fund managers made more in 10 minutes than average-paid U.S. workers earned all of last year.

Bottom Line

Most of us, most of the time, buy from, sell to and work with or employ people who don't make $210,000 an hour. And some portion — could easily be half — of our suppliers, customers, employees and/or fellow workers fall in the 48% of Americans who say the US economy is divided between haves and have-nots — and possibly the 34% who believe they are themselves have-nots.

There's much talk just now about consumer attitudes as we head for the finish line this year. It couldn't hurt to keep in mind this split — to rejoice with those who rejoice — certainly — and even more to weep with those who weep. To do otherwise misses not only an obligation as people of faith but threatens to put us out of touch in our most important business connections.