Not really. Obviously money spends differently in different places, but the sum of EVERYTHING that someone owns being less valuable than my computer, cell phone and the cash in my wallet is very bad.
Never mind the idea that there's still an extreme minority of the population in possession of an obscene ratio of the world's wealth is "awesome" in the sense that it "inspires awe that our society has continued to allow this to happen" but that doesn't mean it's good.
But isn't total wealth relative to the economy one lives in? I'm thinking of Steven Pinker and his latest book "Enlightenment Now", where he discusses some staggering stats about world poverty that are really worth considering. Of course things can definitely be much better. But it seems we actually have been making tremendous progress along this line, so the article's negative connotations may be a bit misplaced.
Never mind the idea that there's still an extreme minority of the population in possession of an obscene ratio of the world's wealth is "awesome" in the sense that it "inspires awe that our society has continued to allow this to happen" but that doesn't mean it's good.