As interesting as Frankfurt can be, this semantic quibbling is unhelpful. When most of us progressive types speak out against "economic inequality", we are not saying we want everybody to have equal wealth. The concern is about rising inequality, of increasing wealth concentrated in an increasingly tiny percentage of the population, while millions struggle to get by, often one bad month away from financial ruin.
And yes, of course we care about fairness. There is nothing insightful about presenting it in contradistinction to concerns about inequality, as though it's the thing we are "really" concerned about. Fairness alone does not guarantee a society where the outcome for the unwealthy is tolerable (unless you're John Rawls). Hence, we care about both.
And yes, of course we care about fairness. There is nothing insightful about presenting it in contradistinction to concerns about inequality, as though it's the thing we are "really" concerned about. Fairness alone does not guarantee a society where the outcome for the unwealthy is tolerable (unless you're John Rawls). Hence, we care about both.