More importantly, continued policy focus on income redistribution perpetuates the idea that income inequality is the root of middle class economic problems, rather than the effect, allowing for the continued avoidance of the deep-rooted structural issues in the U.S. economy.

FORBES: How Will The Middle Class Fare In The Battle Over The Fiscal Cliff?

With its stunning Renaissance art and architecture on view in well-proportioned squares and in world-class museums, there is a sense of elegance and permanence that helps root all who live here.

BBC: Living in: Florence