When I was at college, an undisclosed number of years ago, my ever provocative sociology tutor posed this question to the class: "how much can one person 'earn'?" It came back into my mind this week when watching the second instalment of Jacques Peretti's powerful exploration of inequality The Super-Rich and Us . This question really does go to the heart of our current debate about the ever-widening gap between that top 1% and everybody else. It prompts a discussion about human value, and how pay scales, and wealth, correspond to the actual contribution to society people make through their work. The comments made by Countess Bathurst, in The Super-Rich and Us, were both despairing and, as a consequence, rallying. I'll quote her verbatim: "I think that human nature, by human nature, will always be a little envious of those who have more than they do." She went on "I think there is also an element of, shall we say, not realising what is means