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In 1989, the Bethesda CDP had a median household, median family, and per capita income of $65,889, $84,410, and $38,976. Adjusted to 2012 dollars, that's $121,998, $156,291, and $72,167, which is still significantly lower than the $141,817 (+16.2%), $192,292 (+23.0%), and $84,870 (+17.6%) shown in the 2008-2012 American Community Survey--a noteable increase to be sure, but nowhere near Murray's extremely exaggerated numbers.
(Source: Social Explorer)
That type of jump seems unlikely. It's possible that Murray was wrong and it's equally possible that I was misquoting him. But his basic point seems to be that you have a few select zips in the U.S. that are rapidly becoming more affluent and better educated. And this is, in his view, creating a type of cultural dichotomy that's been previously unknown in America.
Quote:
Murray says the aforementioned cluster of Washington-area Super Zips can be problematic, since “the children who grow up in that concentrated area of wealth go to school with kids who are pretty much exactly like them.”
He’s referring to similar socio-economic status, not ethnicity.
“On the west side of Washington you have all kinds of ethnicities from all around the world,” he says, “lots of diversity there.”
But what happens, he says, is these children “go from K to 12 in that kind of environment. And those same kids from western Washington then go to good schools, also filled with people like them. They get internships at places like the American Enterprise Institute or the Brookings Institution. They can go all the way from childhood to career without ever moving outside the bubble.”
That type of jump seems unlikely. It's possible that Murray was wrong and it's equally possible that I was misquoting him. But his basic point seems to be that you have a few select zips in the U.S. that are rapidly becoming more affluent and better educated. And this is, in his view, creating a type of cultural dichotomy that's been previously unknown in America.
What type of jump? The one stated by Murray that you may have misquoted or the one I posted? The latter is straight from the Census Bureau, adjusted according to the consumer price index (and I agree that the correct numbers don't contradict his basic point).
What type of jump? The one stated by Murray that you may have misquoted or the one I posted? The latter is straight from the Census Bureau, adjusted according to the consumer price index (and I agree that the correct numbers don't contradict his basic point).
The one I may have misquoted. A jump from $87,000 to $187,000 expressed in real terms during that time frame seems unlikely to me.
North Philly has a zip with a "0"! Didn't see any others; even Camden bottomed out at 1. Queens is a bastion of middle of the road zips, a lot hovering around 50.
The zip code I grew up in scored a 27. The actual neighborhood I grew up in would be much higher than that.
North Philly has a zip with a "0"! Didn't see any others; even Camden bottomed out at 1. Queens is a bastion of middle of the road zips, a lot hovering around 50.
That Philly zip (19133) includes the Philadelphia Badlands... the book was called "Third and Indiana" but I always thought of 5th and Lehigh as being the center.
That Philly zip (19133) includes the Philadelphia Badlands... the book was called "Third and Indiana" but I always thought of 5th and Lehigh as being the center.
What are those? Is it obvious from the name itself or is there anything more interesting about it?
I grew up in a few different zips which are currently ranked between 60 and 80 although they probably wouldn't have ranked that high when I was a kid.
The places I've lived as an adult get are between 40 and 70 although the place I've lived for the last 10 years gets a 23. If I was just guessing I would give it a 40 or 50.
I live in the 96th percentile and the nearby places are in the 70th. Which lower incomes.
The Bay Area is very very class segregated, and I am well aware most people I know grew up middle class with college educated parents. What this article doesn't talk about is the huge wealth gap between ethnic groups.
I can look at the circumstance of my white peers versus the non white ones. Because of generational wealth and white middle-class people tend have much higher reserves then there the other nonwhite people. And this was reflected in differences between the college graduation experience, my white peers likely received a good sized monetary graduation gifts.
The Bay Area is pretty much tops in the country when it comes to social mobility. That might not be saying much these days but compared to say, Atlanta, it's much better.
I would be careful about equating the experience of wealthy, white suburbanites with the experience of all white people. Most rich people are white ≠ most white people are rich. The number of white households in the bottom two income quintiles is larger than all non-white households combined.
Most middle-class white people are barely hanging on and I'd actually argue that if you have "reserves" to tap into as opposed to credit (that you use to buy groceries so you can still pay the mortgage) then you're probably not really middle-class.
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