Salvatore Babones is a senior lecturer in sociology and social policy at the University of Sydney and an associate fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS). He holds both a master's degree in statistics and a Ph.D. in sociology from the Johns Hopkins University. Before moving to Australia in 2008, he worked in financial risk management and taught sociology and statistics at several U.S. universities. His academic research focuses on income inequality, economic development, and statistical methods for comparative social science research. He writes a weekly column for the Inequality.org website and contributes to progressive websites and newsletters across America. Read about his upcoming book on the American economy, Benchmarking America, at BenchmarkingAmerica.com and visit his personal website, SalvatoreBabones.com. Dr. Babones welcomes e-mail and is always happy to contribute opinions and expertise to a good cause.