Posted on 08/31/2017 7:30:43 AM PDT by rightwingintelligentsia
Middle class benefits are being revoked in the name of affordability. Because of several factors including stagnant wages, rising costs, and politics, being a member of the American middle class is quickly losing what little prestige it has remaining.
Are you middle class? In its discussion of historical middle class societies, The Economist reports, “Their members are neither rich nor poor but somewhere in-between…’Middle-class’ describes an income category but also a set of attitudes … An essential characteristic is the possession of a reasonable amount of discretionary income. Middle-class people do not live from hand to mouth, job to job, season to season, as the poor do.”
Some argue that the most sensible income amount to attach to the middle class would be the median household income, around $54,000. Perhaps, anyone who earns between the 25th percentile and 75th percentile is a member of the middle class.
Diana Farrell, once Deputy Director of America’s National Economic Council, told The Economist she thinks a middle class income begins at the point where a person (or family) has one-third of their income left over for discretionary purposes after they’ve provided themselves with food and shelter. In other words, someone who earns $3,000 per month would have $1,000 left after they’ve paid their mortgage or rent, utilities, and grocery bills.
Discretionary income is not so easy to find. We’ve created a list of ten things the middle class can no longer really afford. We’re not talking about lavish luxuries, like private jets and yachts. The items on this list are a bit more basic, and some are even necessities.
(Excerpt) Read more at cheatsheet.com ...
So are professional sporting tickets. Mostly corporate owners of those seats.
They did it on one salary too. My dad was a cowboy in the 1960s, nobody does that for the money. We made a trip every year to my grandfather’s ranch in Colorado for Christmas. My mother would take us with her on the train to visit her family in Missouri once a year too. We got a new pickup every 4 or 5 years. They had the money if one of us needed to the doctor/ER. They also had medical insurance. We also went to the movies.
What happened?
In that era, that ticket cost about as much as 20 gallons of gasoline.
You are making a lot of assumptions about how people spend their money. You are out of touch with reality.
“blowing money on other stuff” - what does that mean? The $80 a week we spend for groceries? We do not ever go out to eat. I pack a lunch for work every day. Maybe we are blowing money on the $181 monthly gas/water bill or $151 electricity? $5,000/year for real estate taxes? $3,000/year for homeowner’s insurance? How about this one: Over $6,000 for health insurance premiums that I cannot even use, because of the co-pays and deductibles.
But you seem to have all of the answers.
“Big time kudos to the website for posting them all on one page instead of making you click through ten pages of ads.”
I never participate in that. I refuse on principle. If you can put your content on one page and don’t, I leave.
“10. Going to the movies”
I don’t care if you are middle close or below it, if you can’t go to the movies occasionally, you are living above your means. Good job putting yourself underwater.
Salaried government workers=Outer Party.
Inner Party+Outer Party=Deep State.
I agree. My son just bought a 1999 Dodge RAM with 75,000 miles on it. It’s the oldest and lowest mileage car we own. Our others, five altogether in the family are 2003-2006 and range from 150,000 to 275,000 miles.
I have a new company car but I sometimes prefer driving my 275,000 mile Vibe. It’s a lot more fun. 5 speed.
I will never buy a new car.
No one is taught home economics anymore.
The first step is to have a budget.
Next pay yourself first. What this means is spend less then you earn and build up an emergency nest egg.
Next learn the difference between wants and needs. We all want a lot of things, we only need a few.
Be prepared to be unemployed. Sooner or later you will lose your job.
Perhaps the best advise I have for someone is do not charge more on your credit card then you can pay off each month. Interest on credit card debt would pay for all the above
How about a decent girl friend?
It’s your budget, manage it. If you’re living beyond your means pick either side of that equation and change. Maybe the house is too big, maybe there’s too many doo-dads, maybe you’re just not making as much money as you think. We’ve developed this American stereotype of the guy with the new smartphone sitting in the coffee shop having his usual complaining he can’t afford stuff. You can decide if you’re living up to that or not, I’m just pointing out that people who are living up to that made their own bed and if they’re shortsheeted that’s on them.
That's incredible! When I got started I paid $14 an hour wet plus $8 for the instructor. A 150 was $13 wet.
You can get unlimited talk, text and data for way less than $300 a month.
Housing costs are outrageous.
My WATER bill here in MA is bigger than all of my other utility bills excluding my crazy comcast bill.
I’d cut the cord but others here would have no clue what to do with themselves.
I can afford all of these things. However, I choose never to spend money on movie tickets. My wife stayed at home and cared for our kids, so no need for child care (and it is a dumb decision to have someone else raise your child anyway.) I will never go into debt just to send my child to a liberal, indoctrination center called college. And finally, it is financially smart to buy used vehicles.
So, for many of these things...it is assumed the middle class would even want to purchase these things. I say no to many of them.
JoMa
If the size of your bank account has anything to do with the girl you are dating,
You’ve got the WRONG girl.
me neither, plus, Since the introduction of thugball, never even watched one on "free" Tv...
I can’t even afford college games anymore.
I have a 12 year old car that books for about 4 thousand.
Already sunk 3 grand into it. Needs another grand or so to get it running good.
To replace it with a good USED vehicle would cost me $30,000.
The smart money is fixing what I have.
Sister. My daughter is smarter than that
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