Very interesting and informative article. I agree with most of the proposed, but the final sentence of the article is preposterous. "Policies designed to make redistribution more efficient need not hamper growth itself." This cannot be said in advance. Especially today (2 years after the article was written), we can see large unemployment numbers, increasing inequality, and a tendency toward social state shrink, even in developed countries and despite (weak) growth. Even if this is because of increased indebtedness, it shows that, in the limit, growth, as managed by the financial sector, can be against poverty reduction and social justice. (Of course, I discuss here the smaller numbers of poor people in developed countries, but these countries also show the best possible outcome for developing ones.)



In addition, it is not likely that growth, in general, is sustainable, especially as long as we give it quantitative meaning in terms of goods produced. Planetary resources are finite. The distinction between quantitative and qualitative growth has yet to be made in economic terms, and, thus, what is clear for a large number of people is not yet a "scientific fact". As a result, I would argue that there is no proof growth is sustainable, and, as a result, interrelating efficient redistribution with growth may be the wrong way forward.