Class divide widening

CARY -- As I wait for the light to change at the corner of Cary Parkway and Kildaire Farm Road near my home, I sometimes pass the time counting the Mercedes, Lincoln Navigators and Range Rovers that whiz by.

I'm glad people are reaping the benefits of their hard work (or, in some cases, their fortuitous marriage, smart selection of parents or superior ability to navigate office politics.)

But it also reminds me of the growing inequality in American life -- a point often made by Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards.

Edwards likes to note that a generation ago, CEOs made 40 times more than workers. Today, they make, on average, 400 times more.

This is not your father's economy.

Between World War II and 2001, average American income grew every year. Since then, Americans have been earning less every year. The average income, when adjusted for inflation, dropped from $55,714 in 2000 to $55,238 in 2005, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

But not at the top. Consider the salaries, stock options and compensation packages of major North Carolina executives.

I have no doubt that Jim Rogers, CEO of Duke Power [$27.5 million last year], Ken Lewis, CEO of Bank of America [$22.9 million], and Ken Thompson, CEO of Wachovia [$18.4 million], are fine executives. But those were thriving companies before they took charge and most likely will continue to be after they retire to their country estates.

By comparison, the executives at Progress Energy, the Raleigh-based power company, work cheap, according to The News & Observer's annual review of executive compensation:

Robert McGehee, the CEO, received $7.9 million in compensation. William Johnson, the president, got $3.8 million. Peter Scott, the chief financial officer, got $2.8 million.

I'm sure they work hard, taking their Blackberries and beepers with them on vacation. But do they work harder than the Progress Energy linemen who work around the clock, battling ice, hurricanes and live wires to keep power going to our houses and businesses?

Progress Energy is no different from most corporations.

Life at the top includes corporate jets, a paid country club membership and free cars.

R.H. Donnelley, the Cary-based company that publishes the Yellow Pages, provided its top five executives with $11,975 each for personal financial planning.

First Citizens Bank paid $173,248 for an alarm and monitoring system for the home of Lewis "Snow" Holding, the company's chief executive officer.

Anybody who brings up the growing disparity in America, such as Edwards, gets accused of class warfare.

In fact, we are a more egalitarian society than in the pre-income tax days of George Vanderbilt, who built the feudal 250-room Biltmore mansion in Asheville amid the grinding poverty of hill country farmers.

Today, we are a middle-class society. Most of us have cell phones, cable and microwaves.

But the economic divide is growing.