In addition to federal, state, and local government taking more and more of our money now, than they took back in the 50's, people also spend a greater percentage of their income on "non-essential essentials." Although automobiles, for example, were more expensive back in the 50's as a percentage of family income, most suburban families only had one car. I look around today and see two, three, sometimes four automobiles per household. People also have muliple TV's, VCR's/DVD's, cable bills, ISP bills, multiple cell phone bills, designer clothing, larger houses, built in swimming pools, home spas, health club memberships, lotto tickets, interest on credit card bills, and a host of other places to spend and many cases waste their money. If we all limited our spending to food, basic clothing, a "small house and a decent little car" and a once a year trip to Florida (where we stayed wirth relatives rather than in an expensive hotel), we would probably discover that even the so-called "working poor" make more than enough to support a family of four.