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The advances in medicine and technology are staggering...
Hindsight2020s post on technology was on target, IMO.
As for medicine, most of the "advances" have been bogus IMO. We spend huge gobs of money on health care in the U.S. and yet 68% of our population is overweight and 33% is obese. Our life expectancy hasn't increased nearly as fast as it has in other 1st World Countries. We spend all this money on technology and pills to treat people AFTER they get sick instead of emphasizing wellness and healthy behavior. The key to affordable and more "advanced" health care isn't in more expensive technology, it's in healthy habits.
through in with the keys is altering genetics too as you can lead the healthies lifestyle you want like my cousin did but if the genetics are poor the game may be over anyway.
through in with the keys is altering genetics too as you can lead the healthies lifestyle you want like my cousin did but if the genetics are poor the game may be over anyway.
Genetics is only 30% of health, at most. People love to pick out the examples where lifestyle didn't matter and ignore all the others where it did.
certain things you can "lifestyle" away but others you really can't.
diabetes for instance can be as much as 70% inherited and a genetic play..
93% of diabetes would go away with proper diet and exercise.
Diabetes, on the other hand, doesn't need to exist. And it hardly did exist until the 20th century. The researchers found that four health factors contributed to a 93-percent reduced risk in developing diabetes among the people in the study.
If you make over $10 an hour full time and don't have kids, a hefty student loan bill, or an expensive health problem, you're not poor. Even in more expensive cities, you can make it. I lived in Brooklyn for four months last year off that salary, and only had to leave because I lost the job. In fact, it was even easier than where I live now because I didn't have car expenses. Transportation was a flat $120 a month (or however much the unlimited monthly Metrocard costs) instead of the $300 I now spend on the payment, gas, and insurance.
I make less than that. $9 an hour, full time, or on average about $1100-$1200 a month, depending on what holidays there are that month. I do freelance work on the side, but that's very unreliable money, and I could cover all my basic expenses without it, anyway. Here's how I do it.
Basic expenses:
Rent/Utilities: $600 a month. In January, I'm moving in with roommates, which will decrease it to $400 a month. I'll miss my apartment, but I'm definitely salivating over that extra $200.
Car payment: $80/month on a $5,000 personal loan from the credit union with a 5-year term. I brought a Toyota, so it should outlive the loan.
Gas: $100/month
Insurance: ~$100/month.
Phone: $30 a month with T-Mobile's basic prepaid plan.
That works out to ~$910 a month.
Everything else comes out of the remaining $200.
Food is a variable expense. I only eat one meal a day, most of the time. Sometimes two. But rarely three. Contrary to popular belief, if you're work a desk job and don't work out much, eating three heavy meals a day will (probably) just make you gain weight. My mom sells produce for a living, and she usually gives me some of her daily leftovers, which takes care of the vegetables. I don't eat much meat. I do eat out sometimes, though. Probably more than I should. I usually have something off the McDonald's or Wendy's dollar menu at work, because I never have time to pack a lunch before work, and that's all there is within driving distance.
On particularly busy days, or if I have some spare income, I'll get takeout after work: usually something that only costs about $6 to $8, like a Chipotle burrito or Chinese food. I almost never order drinks at restaurants, especially not alcoholic ones.
Entertainment: Whatever's left over. I hate clubbing, I don't care for bars, and almost no events that interest me happen here. This city might be boring, but at least it helps me save money. There's only one club in town I care about, and thankfully, they have no cover on Fridays before midnight or Saturdays before 10:30, so if I want to go out, I'll just head there and not buy drinks. (I've all but quit drinking lately, but on rare occasion, I'll buy a $5 bottle of Jack from the liquor store.) All my other entertainment comes from surfing the internet (included in utilities), freelancing, and working on a novel. I buy a lot of used books and DVDs at yard sales and library sales, but those are so cheap (usually only .50 to $5 each) that they still add up to less than $20 a month.
I rarely spend money on clothes. I go to thrift stores when they're having sales, take hand-me-downs in good condition, and only own three pairs of shoes.
For emergencies, I've had to take out a few small personal loans. Part of the reason I'm moving to a cheaper place is so I'll be able to pay them back quicker. After that, I'll be able to start saving.
I don't plan on living like this for much longer, of course. But for now, it's working out.
Last edited by That Guy You Met Once; 12-27-2013 at 11:01 AM..
The irony is that the $13,034 in taxes paid by the middle class tax payer goes direct to the lower end wage earners for their income! LOL
20yrsinBranson
Damn that is just wrong lol...I'm all for helping people but graphs/data like that just make people made. I'm used to getting ****ed up the ass though as a single guy making close to that amount (60K)
If you make over $10 an hour full time and don't have kids, a hefty student loan bill, or an expensive health problem, you're not poor. Even in more expensive cities, you can make it. I lived in Brooklyn for four months last year off that salary, and only had to leave because I lost the job. In fact, it was even easier than where I live now because I didn't have car expenses. Transportation was a flat $120 a month (or however much the unlimited monthly Metrocard costs) instead of the $300 I now spend on the payment, gas, and insurance.
I make less than that. $9 an hour, full time, or on average about $1100-$1200 a month, depending on what holidays there are that month. I do freelance work on the side, but that's very unreliable money, and I could cover all my basic expenses without it, anyway. Here's how I do it.
Basic expenses:
Rent/Utilities: $600 a month. In January, I'm moving in with roommates, which will decrease it to $400 a month. I'll miss my apartment, but I'm definitely salivating over that extra $200.
Car payment: $80/month on a $5,000 personal loan from the credit union with a 5-year term. I brought a Toyota, so it should outlive the loan.
Gas: $100/month
Insurance: ~$100/month.
Phone: $30 a month with T-Mobile's basic prepaid plan.
That works out to ~$910 a month.
Everything else comes out of the remaining $200.
Food is a variable expense. I only eat one meal a day, most of the time. Sometimes two. But rarely three. Contrary to popular belief, if you're work a desk job and don't work out much, eating three heavy meals a day will (probably) just make you gain weight. My mom sells produce for a living, and she usually gives me some of her daily leftovers, which takes care of the vegetables. I don't eat much meat. I do eat out sometimes, though. Probably more than I should. I usually have something off the McDonald's or Wendy's dollar menu at work, because I never have time to pack a lunch before work, and that's all there is within driving distance.
On particularly busy days, or if I have some spare income, I'll get takeout after work: usually something that only costs about $6 to $8, like a Chipotle burrito or Chinese food. I almost never order drinks at restaurants, especially not alcoholic ones.
Entertainment: Whatever's left over. I hate clubbing, I don't care for bars, and almost no events that interest me happen here. This city might be boring, but at least it helps me save money. There's only one club in town I care about, and thankfully, they have no cover on Fridays before midnight or Saturdays before 10:30, so if I want to go out, I'll just head there and not buy drinks. (I've all but quit drinking lately, but on rare occasion, I'll buy a $5 bottle of Jack from the liquor store.) All my other entertainment comes from surfing the internet (included in utilities), freelancing, and working on a novel. I buy a lot of used books and DVDs at yard sales and library sales, but those are so cheap (usually only .50 to $5 each) that they still add up to less than $20 a month.
I rarely spend money on clothes. I go to thrift stores when they're having sales, take hand-me-downs in good condition, and only own three pairs of shoes.
For emergencies, I've had to take out a few small personal loans. Part of the reason I'm moving to a cheaper place is so I'll be able to pay them back quicker. After that, I'll be able to start saving.
I don't plan on living like this for much longer, of course. But for now, it's working out.
Health care?
Dental care?
Vehicle maintenance and repairs?
Whatever else you consume to not be malnourished despite only eating once a day?
Unemployment savings?
Retirement savings?
Vehicle replacement fund?
Relocation fund?
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