In another exercise in self-fulfilling prophecies, economists told the US economy that it was in full recovery, and the news jolted the stock market into another temporary jump:

The US economy grew at a sizzling 5 percent annual rate last quarter, the fastest since 2003, fueled by consumer and business spending. The surge confirmed that the U.S. economy is steadily strengthening and outshining others around the world.

The news helped lift the Dow Jones industrial average above 18,000 for the first time. And it could shape the Federal Reserve’s decision on when to raise interest rates from record lows.

More than ever before, our economic success is dependent on how we view our economy. Which, in case you didn’t know, is not a very stable foundation for economic success. And honestly, a GDP growth doesn’t do much for the majority of Americans if the wealth growth continues to stay with a very small percentage of Americans.

Consider China. It continues to “enjoy” an economic growth that far outstrips the growth of the US economy (and even recently outstripped the US economy in total size as well). Yet, the majority of Chinese citizens live in poverty. I don’t think the current economic growth we are experiencing is trickling down to the middle and lower class, in spite of the “best efforts” of bleeding hearts and “other-people’s-money” philanthropists. Income inequality just continues to get worse.

When I say “income inequality,” don’t think I am channeling some liberal talking point. Crony capitalism and wealth redistribution, in tandem, have basically ruined the US economy for the middle class. And constitutional republicanism is absolutely in contradiction to both of those things. I am happy to hear that the US economy seems to be making a recovery on paper. I won’t be happy though until I see average workers and families being able to survive on the wages they used to thrive on.