Census: 1/2 of Americans are Poor or Low Income

[K0RGR]

According to the Census Bureau, 1 out of every 2 Americans is either poor or low income :
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/ The link to the video is under 'Latest Program'.

Middle Class? What middle class?

But, there's no need to worry. Our grandkids will all be able to get good jobs at McDonald's.

[NC5P]

But, there's no need to worry. Our grandkids will all be able to get good jobs at McDonald's.

Yes, and don't forget that many of them will have Masters and PhD degrees in engineering, science, math, etc. so they can flip burgers better than any other nation on earth!

[WB2WIK]

Yes, and don't forget that many of them will have Masters and PhD degrees in engineering, science, math, etc. so they can flip burgers better than any other nation on earth!

Not necessarily. My X-XYL had a Ph.D. and could burn water. That's when I learned how to cook, and I've been cooking ever since.

[NA0AA]

I think this study was by the Heritage Foundation, so it's not exactly without it slant.

[AF6LJ]

Considering the real unemployment rate I could easily believe it, with one in five out of work, ande even more under-employed.

[AE5TE]

All in the definition, who is doing the measuring, motivation, and all nearly meaningless. Look around. The standard of living for even the poorest of Americans is pretty darn good.

Much begrudging going on over the one percent or whatever it is. I don't care. Their vast wealth doesn't take a thing from anyone. There IS NO PIE.

[WA4OTD]

Interesting wiki on poverty with data coming from census bureau also. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty..._United_States The percentage of poor has remained relatively constant at around 15%.

number one item listed as factor:
Income has a high correlation with educational levels. In 2007, the median earnings of household headed by individuals with less than a 9th grade education was $20,805 while households headed by high school graduates received $40,456, households headed holders of bachelor’s degree earned $77,605, and families headed by individuals with professional degrees earned $100,000.

And the plague of divorce:
Among single parent families: 26.6% lived in poverty

Get and education and stay married......

[WA4BRL]

...number one item listed as factor:
Income has a high correlation with educational levels. In 2007, the median earnings of household headed by individuals with less than a 9th grade education was $20,805 while households headed by high school graduates received $40,456, households headed holders of bachelor’s degree earned $77,605, and families headed by individuals with professional degrees earned $100,000...

B-b-b-but, way back in the wonderland of 2007, it was a whole different world. The stock market was still rising, as was real estate. People were still buying houses, slapping drywall and paint over all the serious problems, and flipping them for exorbitant prices weeks later. And there seemed no limit to how high real estate prices could climb. It didn't matter if one didn't have the resources to jump into real estate flipping, there were all kinds of sub-prime loans available, and mortgage bankers were bringing home multi-million dollar bonuses for selling them. One could just look at a peice of property and make a bundle, or, more accurately, NOT look at the property. The market for real estate appraisers was huge -- why actually inspect a property when a little wink and nod returned huge payoffs under the table. A fraudulent valuation on a home allowed for all kinds of grifts on the system -- and huge profits to those involved.

So what if a lot of first-time home buyers got saddled with homes worth far less than their mortgages? Everything was hunky dory for those at the top. These were wonderful times. Those making the big bucks learned there was no limit to how much more they could make if they just shut-up and played along. What could possibly go wrong?

As it turned out, 2008 could go wrong. Yes it was a very different world back when that 2007 data was collected.

[WA4OTD]

WHat is the census data of today? I'm sure education and staying married are still key factors in your income.

Look at one of the excel files http://www.census.gov/compendia/stat...ty_wealth.html it hasn't changed significantly in the past few years either.

There was certainly a housing bubble with many people getting burned. I call that personal accountability.......

B-b-b-but, way back in the wonderland of 2007, it was a whole different world. The stock market was still rising, as was real estate. People were still buying houses, slapping drywall and paint over all the serious problems, and flipping them for exorbitant prices weeks later. And there seemed no limit to how high real estate prices could climb. It didn't matter if one didn't have the resources to jump into real estate flipping, there were all kinds of sub-prime loans available, and mortgage bankers were bringing home multi-million dollar bonuses for selling them. One could just look at a peice of property and make a bundle, or, more accurately, NOT look at the property. The market for real estate appraisers was huge -- why actually inspect a property when a little wink and nod returned huge payoffs under the table. A fraudulent valuation on a home allowed for all kinds of grifts on the system -- and huge profits to those involved.

So what if a lot of first-time home buyers got saddled with homes worth far less than their mortgages? Everything was hunky dory for those at the top. These were wonderful times. Those making the big bucks learned there was no limit to how much more they could make if they just shut-up and played along. What could possibly go wrong?

As it turned out, 2008 could go wrong. Yes it was a very different world back when that 2007 data was collected.

[WN9HJW]

It's basically just saying that half of all people are below the average income .

Well Of course they are. That's by definition!

What this is about is some lefty nut college professor is trying to equate being below average with being poor.

It's like saying that half of all people are stupid because they're below the average IQ.

It's a really sophomoric argument.