Posted on 11/20/2023 9:46:51 AM PST by ChicagoConservative27
I do a little of both.
Slightly better than paycheck to paycheck myself.
A few rounds of major hospitalizations even with decent insurance were almost financially fatal.
...and they love it!
They are sacraficing in support of those experiencing injustice in this world.
They feel they are better than by being worse off.
How they vote confirms this.
I know. Makes no sense.
Even more are using credit cards to fill the gap.
“ But don’t most people do this? “
Yes, that’s what the title says.
> I subbed in a high school chemistry class studying reactions. And I told the kids that sodium combusts with water. <
I taught chemistry for many years. And I can verify how stupid school administrators are. Sodium does react vigorously with water. But no kid could possibly get his hands on elemental sodium. It would be way easier to make a standard pipe bomb. No matter. Out you go.
Here’s another true story. A friend of mine taught chemistry at another high school. One day she made a remark similar to yours, and the principal found out. My friend couldn’t be fired as she had tenure.
So the principal made her go through every student textbook, and remove all pages that covered elemental Group 1 reactions. Insane, simply insane.
I would add that even if someone is saving a small amount of money each paycheck, if whatever is left over is going to repayment of debt (credit card, not mortgage), then they are living paycheck to paycheck.
Mortgage payments convert cash into equity (minus loan interest), so I don't count that as debt repayment per se. Credit card debt is mostly consumable expense liabilities, so repayment of that debt is not sustaining an asset.
So IMHO anyone who still has a revolving credit balance after disposing of their paycheck is living paycheck to paycheck.
-PJ
Big unspoken element——
Paycheck means “working” for a living. Many people do not work and receive a paycheck.
Old statistic (must be much higher in 2023)
In 2019, 99.1 million people participated in one of the 10 programs discussed in this data point
representing 30 percent of the U.S. population.
More than one in four working‐age adults (27 percent) and nearly one of every two children (49
percent) participated in a safety net program.
Nearly one in eight adults (12 percent) and one in three children (33 percent) participated in
multiple safety net programs.
Among beneficiaries, 47 percent of adults and two out of three children (67 percent) participated
in multiple programs.
Source: hhs.gov
in before the “people are lazy and spend too much on crap” and “if they would just be rich like me” and and might as well throw in “if they would just push away from the dinner table they would be skinny” crowd..
A nation with incredible resources, constitutionally guaranteed freedom to do just about anything you please…and this is the result.
Honestly, our government is twice as large and twice as expensive as it needs to be. Cut taxes, let people keep more of their money.
“One who is actively saving and investing is, by definition, NOT living “paycheck to paycheck”. That term refers to people whose paycheck barely cover expenses, and do not allow for savings and investment.”
Yep. Your working years are as good as it gets. Plan ahead. Also expect taxes to go up as more and more socialism is enacted.
You should see the debt-to-savings ratio of families living in nicer neighborhoods with all the cars and toys. They might be making six figures, but they are living on the edge of a cliff.
It isn’t how much you earn, it’s how much you spend.
There's a family I know who wanted to send their son, who is quite smart, to a private Christian school. The Mom told her church members they can't afford it, so the church surprised them with a fund-raiser for the kid's tuition
Meanwhile, I know the family lives in what looks like a 4000 sq. foot McMansion, and Dad drives a big jacked-up Ford 250, has a boat parked in the backyard, and mom drives an Infiniti.
Yes, they probably DON'T have money for son's tuition, and they probably believe they need help, because they probably spend every penny that comes in, and more.
I admit I don't know their family details, and I do not want to be a gossip, a grinch, or tear people down, so have simply kept my observations to myself.
for waaay too many, livin large is unsupportable...
Shiitake mushrooms?
Well, we can’t all be Joe Biden and get our 10% of all the graft, greed and corruption his family and administration does.
Lucky kid, at least he'll get a good education.
The question is...
Living paycheck to paycheck just to buy food for survival and paying for having roof over one’s head - well THAT is tough.
Living paycheck to paycheck while living a good life, eating well, while having a house or nice apartment at one’s disposal, while putting money aside for one’s retirement or children’s future studies... that’s a whole different matter.
So living paycheck to paycheck doesn’t explain the true situation people have. There might be huge differences in living standards, while living paycheck to paycheck.
It’s neither bad or good. Life is life.
In other words, this isn't anything new.
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