( CNN ) -- Last week , nearly 40 billionaires announced their intention to give half their wealth to charity at the encouragement of bridge-playing buddies Warren Buffett and Bill Gates . This unprecedented action brought to mind Winston Churchill 's famous line about the Lend-Lease plan as `` the most unsordid act in the whole of human history . '' There has lately been dark talk of the American Dream and American exceptionalism slipping away , but I believe this billionaire compact shows both are alive and well . The majority of individuals on this self-selecting list are self-made men and women who built their fortunes in their own lifetime . Among them are New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison . Separately , it was announced earlier this week that the estate of the late Johnny Carson was also donating more than $ 150 million to a charitable foundation . It 's difficult to imagine any other nation in history whose wealthiest individuals would voluntarily decide to give half their wealth to charity , not only at home , but around the world . And whether the money goes to cure river blindness in Africa or help finance charter schools in this country , it is something that reflects well upon the United States . Those who pledge do us proud . There is another issue raised by the billionaires ' compact , beyond the increasing gap between rich and poor in the United States . It is the gap between the `` super rich '' -- who really do have more money than they know what to do with -- and what might be called the `` working wealthy , '' who are taxed as though they 're rich enough to able to give away half their money . These are individuals whose household income might bring them into the top tax bracket of $ 250,000 a year but who , with two parents working , might still find themselves struggling to stay in the stability of the upper-middle class in the expensive urban areas where they often work . Much of the anger about the scheduled sunset of the Bush tax cuts for the increase in top-bracket taxes comes from this productive group of Americans . The super rich are looking for charitable donations to deduct from their taxes each year , while the working wealthy are still trying to pay all their bills . But they are taxed at the same rate as the private jet set ( what a few years ago might been called the Bernie Madoff crowd ) . The super-rich rule high finance or might have started a high-tech company before the bubble . In contrast , the working wealthy might include someone who owns a small business or works as a mid-level executive in a top-line traditional corporation . But they are the ones most feeling the squeeze of expectations in the Great Recession , while getting lumped in with the super rich . Let 's be clear : The working wealthy are n't suffering in any objective sense , but they feel they are paying most of the taxes and getting few of the benefits . Small-business owners create almost 70 percent of the new jobs in America , and they are the ones who feel most left out of the current economic recovery . At the same time , the Metro Wealth Index shows that the number of millionaires is increasing in cities across the country . And the bankers who triggered the economic collapse got billions in bailout money and even got to keep some of their taxpayer-subsidized bonuses . The forgotten American middle class saw no real gains in income over the past decade despite the tax cuts because of rising health care and energy costs . Big business and big government seem indifferent to the struggles of small businesses , and it 's got small-business owners feeling angry and alienated , like forgotten American citizens . Meanwhile , politicians slobber over the super rich for campaign donations while they pander to voters with class-warfare populism . The billionaires ' compact is worth viewing with uncynical eyes . It is an historic and selfless attempt to leave the world a better place . And if the charitable contributions are directed carefully , funding innovation and fostering independence ( like Andrew Carnegie 's public libraries did a century ago ) , rather than dependence , then they can help more people to achieve their own American dreams . But the stark fact is that such largess in a time of recession also highlights the growing gaps in our society , not just between the rich and poor , but between the super rich , the working wealthy and the forgotten middle class . America remains a meritocracy with long odds and high-payouts -- and is infinitely better than any alternative . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John Avlon .
Buffett says two billionaires ' pledge of fortune is inspiring act of us exceptionalism . But he says it points up gap between the `` super rich '' and `` working wealthy '' couples . These $ more than $ 150 million couples may be in John Avlon tax bracket , but struggle to stay in upper-middle class . Avlon : Working wealthy are n't suffering , but they pay high taxes , get few benefits .