| > Sure, lots of people have no idea what it's like to live abroad and have doomers telling them to get out because it's not their fault they aren't successful in the country where the middle class has the highest disposable income in the world. I'm well aware they exist as a person who spends some amount of time online, so you can spare me the lecture about being curious. What disposable income? There is very little, if any, middle class left ("K-shaped economy"). You say misinformed, but the economic ground truth is clear as day imho. Americans Are Falling Behind on Their $1.25 Trillion Credit-Card Bill - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48327518 - May 2026 ‘It’s never enough’: young Americans struggle to build financial independence as cost of living spikes - https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/31/young-adults... - May 31st, 2026 Brookings: States of Affordability: A series on where and why US households struggle to make ends meet - https://www.brookings.edu/articles/states-of-affordability-a... - May 27th, 2026 This is how close American households are to the financial edge - https://www.npr.org/2026/05/28/nx-s1-5836525/affordability-r... - May 26th, 2026 Urban Institute: The American Affordability Tracker - https://www.urban.org/data-tools/american-affordability-trac... - Last updated April 2nd, 2026 > Nearly half of people in American families cannot afford the true cost of living. Urban research finds 49 percent of people in American families don’t have the resources to cover essential expenses to live securely in their community. > The cost of essential goods and services is rising faster than earnings. Since 2017, average earnings have grown about 43 percent nationwide. Over the same period, home sale prices have increased 81 percent and rents 54 percent. The lowest-cost Silver health plan on the Affordable Care Act Marketplace has risen 77 percent, and child care costs have grown dramatically. > Rising everyday expenses, including energy and transportation, are adding new pressures on households. Residential electricity costs have increased faster than earnings across much of the country, leaving customers paying about $40 more in December 2025 on average than they did in December 2017. Gas prices have also risen sharply, with the national average growing by $1.00 per gallon since late February 2026. > Affordability pressures are spreading beyond traditionally high-cost areas. > Many previously low-cost regions, including parts of Atlanta, Chicago, Louisville, Winston-Salem, Columbus, Nashville, western New York, south-central Wisconsin, and central Florida, are seeing costs for housing, health care, and groceries rise faster than in other areas. Brookings: In every corner of the country, the middle class struggles with affordability - https://www.brookings.edu/articles/in-every-corner-of-the-co... - December 2nd, 2025 Americans are losing spending power, say researchers: Most can no longer afford a ‘minimal quality of life’ - https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/13/most-americans-cant-afford-a... - June 13th, 2025 US Dept of Labor: Childcare costs remain an almost prohibitive expense - https://blog.dol.gov/2024/11/19/new-data-childcare-costs-rem... - November 19th, 2024 |
Claiming there's "very little middle class left" is laughable, and then I can double over when I remember that the median household income is higher in Mississippi than it is in the UK.
Your wall of citations is basically just documenting the vibes I described. You missed the "(some scary percentage) of households are living paycheck to paycheck" one which is regularly discredited because people don't know how much they spend in general and consider things like optional 401k contributions to be "spending".
Please, please, please provide the name of this charity so I can donate to it.