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A life of a typical middle-class person, I would imagine, in urban Mexico, would be a family consisting of two parents, married in church, two children; an occasional beach vacation (once every two to three years) at a resort, reached by private car or bus; public schooling; one car (likely on par with a very basic, "barebones" manual transmission model in the US; the more cushy; loaded models typical of the U.S. seem not to exist much in Mexico, or elsewhere, for that matter); one part-time domestic servant to wash the dishes and do the laundry (more affluent middle-class households might have a full-time servant who acts as nanny, etc. in addition to doing these basic washing tasks); two or three cell phones, likely pre-paid; cable TV and a flat screen but no HDTV; a laptop with internet access; the standard complement of kitchen appliances, save a dishwasher (maid does them); fashionable but not excessively expensive clothing; an ATM card and maybe a credit card or two (at ridiculous interest rates); and a bank account (much of the Mexican populace is "un-banked", so this is significant). The mall would be a regular Saturday or Sunday destination (many Mexicans work Saturdays). Depending on climate, they may or may not have air conditioning, and if they are in a tropical climate, they are unlikely to have a water heater. They will have occasional fiestas where they invite the entire extended family with carnes asadas (grilled meats) and perhaps premium alcohol (Buchanan's, etc.), accompanied by music and dancing.
I imagine that their life would be considered somewhat austere in the U.S., but the social elements of it (increased socialization, as well as the fact that they are in the upper half or quarter of income) would ease it and their lives, taken as a whole, would even be attractive for many Americans.
Wait a second, keyhero, how do you know what exactly is considered middle class in the U.S.? Because I am American and I do not even know what officially puts someone in the middle class here, but from what I have heard, it is actually a lot less than what even most Americans would think. I remember hearing about 10 years ago it was 28,000 for a family of four. That is really not very much when you consider the cost of living in the United States.
9 years ago I've lived at what the US gov defines as the "threshold of poverty". I believe it's around $22-24k (you can easily google it) for a family of 4 now. If that's the definition of poverty then I imagine that even $28k is still going to be considered working class or the proles, especially in certain regions of the country. Of course, where you live is going to make a huge difference. We couldn't make ends meet if my husband or I were making anything less than $55k here in the Seattle area. When we lived in Michigan it could have probably been $35k.
There are a few documentaries and books about class in America. In my experience they all basically say the same thing: most nearly everyone will identify themselves as being middle class because in our early years as a nation we wanted to rid ourselves of the more definitive British social stratum.
9 years ago I've lived at what the US gov defines as the "threshold of poverty". I believe it's around $22-24k (you can easily google it) for a family of 4 now. If that's the definition of poverty then I imagine that even $28k is still going to be considered working class or the proles, especially in certain regions of the country. Of course, where you live is going to make a huge difference. We couldn't make ends meet if my husband or I were making anything less than $55k here in the Seattle area. When we lived in Michigan it could have probably been $35k.
There are a few documentaries and books about class in America. In my experience they all basically say the same thing: most nearly everyone will identify themselves as being middle class because in our early years as a nation we wanted to rid ourselves of the more definitive British social stratum.
The word "rich" is related to many words that mean power, in particular "reich" which still has strong connotations from WWII. It is also related to "regal" and "rex". It is an unsettling word, and most people find it has negative connotations and would never use it to describe themselves.
The word "wealth" has it's roots in "well-being" which has much fewer negative feelings, but most people don't want to say they are "wealthy".
The term "upper middle class" implies that you worked for your money and were successful. It is the preferred term for most people who could easily be called "rich" by objective measures. Likewise the term "lower middle class" is the preferred term for people who simply don't want to say they are poor. In 2012 roughly 1 out of 3 Americans identify as Lower Middle Class.
So if you permit lower and upper as adjectives, I think you would get close to 75% that describe themselves as "middle class". Politicians increasingly use $250K as the top end of middle class. Only 4% of Americans make money that exceeds that number.
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