Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Got to 2:54 minutes and couldn't take anymore. At least to that point the story was just a load of crock. Aside from stories of relatives picking cotton as kids, I've been into the higher stacked levels of what this guy is calling class and walked away from it more than once. Best I can determine, they liked my attitude which is something like 'You can ride that horse backassward if it'll get you out of my face any faster.'
But then I was raised that there was no class distinction in the U.S..., ref: attitude, above. Make of it what you will, you next life may not be so available.
You bet they were - for the rich. The rest were sinking into poverty or lower social classes.
The amount of spending on entertainment by the middle class has tripled since 1960, the square footage of a home has increased by over 250%, and the number of cars owned by a middle class family has increased by 80% over the last 60 years.
According to the 2007 US census data,
"In the 1950’s housing only accounted for a little over 20 percent of what the average American family spends. Today, a little over 40 percent of the average American family’s income goes towards housing. The reason for the 20 percent jump is the fact that the average family household size has doubled since what was considered to be average in the 1950’s. The houses of today have more bathrooms, bedrooms, and closets. Furthermore, the individual rooms in the houses of today are also a great deal larger in size."
So housing costs have increased as a % of income (due to the reasons above), all other essential goods categories have statically speaking declined in spending.
The middle class spends more today on luxuries (bigger houses, more entertainment) than ever before in history. The middle class would not be suffering if they maintained a consistent standard of living and actually invested more. Despite this higher standard of living, savings rates among the middle class has not increased whatsoever. The middle class has benefited greatly from the economy over the last several decades. There is no data to support what you are saying. Additionally, the current poverty rate is showing the same trends as it has since the mid-70s. The numbers don't support your claim that more people are 'sinking into poverty'.
However, this might provide some of the reasoning behind the wealthy's money grab.
Now that just about anyone with good grades can get into college and move up the ladder, they are probably feeling a little threatened.
Not to mention, women being in the workforce and getting advanced degrees.
My goodness! Everything is just so jumbled up these days! There is no clear-cut division of 'classes' anymore! How will we know who to respect and who not to respect?
You bet they were - for the rich. The rest were sinking into poverty or lower social classes.
What? The 1980's was the yuppie era and yuppies are middle class, not rich. All of the managers, programmers, developers, etc. in the computer and dot com boom were middle class too. Are you saying working professionals who went to school and applied themselves are "the rich"? I think there's truth to what you're saying, but I don't think the booming 1980's and 90's only benefitted the rich. That said, doesn't the working class get propped up when the middle-class+ are successful? I mean, it takes a lot of workers to provide services, work in hotels, restaurants, etc. etc. It seems like the entire socioeconomic spectrum benefitted from the booming 1980's and 90's. Maybe you should explain who the "rest of us" is and how that group fell into poverty or the lower social classes? I'm listening, but just don't get it. Like I said, people make claims but never fully explain them, hence my questions. Actually, I think this is the furthest I've gotten anybody to ever explain themelves on this subject.
I think both of you need to stop drinking your reflective flavors of kool-aid. Some of the elite are descended from rich aristocratic-like families while others have only just moved up there, maybe by luck, hard work, or both. In response to your second paragraph, it's not impossible for the lower classes to reach their dreams, the difficulty may be increasing, but still not impossible. Of course, there is the luck factor. It's my belief the things we truly want in life will be the one we'll work the hardest for, if we have the will to do so.
~never-more
No, the Kool-Aid is in your mouth as we speak, and you seem to drink it nonstop, shower with it, fling it into your eyeballs and up your nose. Of all the right wing myths, the most successful in duping people who don't do much analysis of life, is the American Dream myth. It's most assuredly a dream, of that there is no doubt. But before I waste my precious time explaining to you what you, as an adult with a brain, should already know (that fairy tales are for kids, and you seriously need to stop the self-delusions), let me ask you, what props up your American Dream fantasy so nicely? That your political leaders tell you so, and you're obedient enough to believe it? Or that you just never outgrew fairy tales? What keeps you so comfy and cozy believing this dream?
What? The 1980's was the yuppie era and yuppies are middle class, not rich. All of the managers, programmers, developers, etc. in the computer and dot com boom were middle class too. Are you saying working professionals who went to school and applied themselves are "the rich"? I think there's truth to what you're saying, but I don't think the booming 1980's and 90's only benefitted the rich. That said, doesn't the working class get propped up when the middle-class+ are successful? I mean, it takes a lot of workers to provide services, work in hotels, restaurants, etc. etc. It seems like the entire socioeconomic spectrum benefitted from the booming 1980's and 90's. Maybe you should explain who the "rest of us" is and how that group fell into poverty or the lower social classes? I'm listening, but just don't get it. Like I said, people make claims but never fully explain them, hence my questions. Actually, I think this is the furthest I've gotten anybody to ever explain themelves on this subject.
I have no idea what your discussion of yuppies has to do, unless it is to point out that 1980 brought in the right wing worship of corporations, and that yuppies were on their knees kissing corporate behind.
The amount of spending on entertainment by the middle class has tripled since 1960, the square footage of a home has increased by over 250%, and the number of cars owned by a middle class family has increased by 80% over the last 60 years.
According to the 2007 US census data,
"In the 1950’s housing only accounted for a little over 20 percent of what the average American family spends. Today, a little over 40 percent of the average American family’s income goes towards housing. The reason for the 20 percent jump is the fact that the average family household size has doubled since what was considered to be average in the 1950’s. The houses of today have more bathrooms, bedrooms, and closets. Furthermore, the individual rooms in the houses of today are also a great deal larger in size."
So housing costs have increased as a % of income (due to the reasons above), all other essential goods categories have statically speaking declined in spending.
The middle class spends more today on luxuries (bigger houses, more entertainment) than ever before in history. The middle class would not be suffering if they maintained a consistent standard of living and actually invested more. Despite this higher standard of living, savings rates among the middle class has not increased whatsoever. The middle class has benefited greatly from the economy over the last several decades. There is no data to support what you are saying. Additionally, the current poverty rate is showing the same trends as it has since the mid-70s. The numbers don't support your claim that more people are 'sinking into poverty'.
Do you get paid by the GOP?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
