In "Upper Rung America," Things Break but People Aren't Left to Hang

The more I look at this illustration, the more curious it seems to get:

1. Maybe because you hardly ever look at a ladder this close, especially when the sides rails aren’t completely visible, I also can see this as two separate windows. The difference between the two is that, in “upper America,” things break but people aren’t left to hang.

2. If a rung shattered and you were hanging onto it, seems you would almost immediately loosen your grip. I can just as much see this hand, formed in the iconic symbol of protest, grabbing up a splintered piece of wood. At some level, is this cover a predictor of violence?

3. As an analogy for America and our economic food chain, how could two non-consecutive rungs possibly shatter at the same time? Talk about the country’s profound disconnect when it comes to shared problems and shared solutions.