The Middle Class Is No Longer America's Economic Majority It's the first time that's been true in 40 years. There are now more low-income and high-income Americans combined than there are people in the middle class, a study released Wednesday found. According to a Pew Research Center report, there were 120.8 million adults living in middle-income households and 121.3 million in lower- and upper-income households combined in early 2015, marking the first time in the center's four decades of tracking this data that the size of the latter groups has transcended that of the first. The study defines middle income as adults earning two-thirds to double the national median, which translates today to somewhere between $42,000 and $126,000 a year for a three-person household. Since 1971, the percentage of adults living in the low income bracket has increased from 25 percent to 29 percent, and the percentage of adults living in the highest income bracket has shot up from 14 percent to 21 percent. The middle class, meanwhile, has shrunk from 61 percent to about 50. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/middle-class-not-majority_5668b75be4b0f290e521f31e
Most of my industry connections think this is a necessary progression of free markets, the upper tier is doing the most to increase the GDP and corporate profitability.
I didn't realize the distance for middle income was that wide from 42k to 126k. I have a friend that had been living in a small apartment in NYC making about 115k per year along with being in-debt up to his eyeballs. He always complained about the economy, the president, high cost of living...complaining for about 11 years now. His mom got very sick and he quit his job and took another job near his home in North Carolina about a year ago...almost the same pay. Cost of living much cheaper (a lot cheaper), got his debt under control and recently purchased a house. The same income level having a tremendous difference in value and lifestyle via one factor...geography location. Now he doesn't complain about life as much nor the pollution (air quality).
bush and secretary of the treasury, paulson, who bailed out goldman, paved the way for obama and the leftist tilt of the US.
Yeah, just like with 9/11, the Bush Administration first ignored serious warnings, catastrophe happened, and then they took action. Like the watchdog that starts barking after its owner wakes it up and the burglars are long gone. http://www.economonitor.com/blog/2008/12/bush-wh-ignored-mortgage-meltdown-warnings/ http://www.businessinsider.com/new-...n-were-ignored-by-the-bush-white-house-2012-9 http://thinkprogress.org/world/2015...-administration-ignored-dire-pre-911-warning/