The Number Of Americans Living In Their Vehicles “Explodes”

a reply to: Hypntick

That's what middle class is supposed to be, comfortable life and a good financial situation. You're not wealthy on that but you are comfortable.

originally posted by: nOraKat
A single person making $100k sees about 60-65% of his income after Federal, City/State taxes, Medicare and Social Security payments. That comes out to about $1150 a week. If your mortgage is $2000 a month, thats half your money right there before any other bills/expenses.

Maybe you're spending too much on a mortgage then? A single house payment should be no more than 6% of your income, which comes to $299/month.

So either, that income is not enough to buy a house, or your budget is not financially secure.

Most Americans live from paycheck to paycheck. That's the way capitalism and the accompanied corporate oligarchy designed it.

Doesn't leave many options for the working man except just being a "wage slave".......now see why they hate Unions? Bread and circus anyone?



www.cnbc.com...

a reply to: Willtell

This is what we call "FAKE NEWS" because they hide the numbers so deep, only the most persistent of people will keep clicking to find the truth. So here's the real scoop, buried four pages away at seattle times.

With pressure to show progress on the homelessness crisis, the county on Thursday announced an overall 4 percent increase in the annual snapshot count of homeless people, to 12,112.

Oops, so much for that crazy 46% statistic from your article. But the more important part to discrediting your absurd premise that the economy isn't booming:

Compared to more rapid rises in homeless counts over the past five years, a slower 4 percent increase represents progress, said Kyra Zylstra, interim director of All Home, the county’s homelessness coordinating agency, which organizes the yearly count.

Finally, here's the kicker, they consider people living in RV's to be homeless and not only that, but unsheltered. I'm sorry, you're not homeless if you live in an RV. Especially when you're doing so because you don't want to pay california prices for housing but you're making california wages.

A fair number of the "vehicular homeless" in Silicon Valley are employed but are unable to find affordable housing, as the Associated Press noted last year. Lines of RVs can be found near the headquarters of tech heavyweights such as Apple, Google and Hewlett-Packard.

I could go on and on about how misleading and wrong your OP is but you wouldn't listen anyway, so what's the point?

a reply to: olaru12

Guess what, you don't have to!

originally posted by: Dfairlite
a reply to: olaru12

Guess what, you don't have to!

Correct, but you need a skill, or expertise in something a little more marketable in the high tech sector/business biz.

America is now a "service industry" not mfg. economy and that limits options for a lot of undereducated citizens like most people. HS and jr college won't prep you for much.

www.forbes.com...

Our government, for the most part, has said for decades how well our economy is doing. In some ways that is true, but it has not trickled down to the people. Not even close. And that makes me question why so many support the Republican Party which continues to transfer wealth from the middle class to the upper class. Look at any chart of average family income since Ronald Regan took office. See how earnings for most families have flatlined since, while upper class income has skyrocketed. Then factor into inflation, how so many goods and services have increased by hundreds of percent and its no wonder so many people are homeless or live just one paycheck away from it. The tipping point approaches. I'm not sure when or what it will be. But hopefully it will be diffused peacefully. Otherwise, heads will roll and it will make the civil war look like a joke. History has proven time and time again that the masses can take only so much abuse. Why do the rich think they can avert what ever other civilization has suffered in the past?

a reply to: burdman30ott6

So true, I'm sitting here like wtf 250k is the start of middle class? I make decent wages not anywhere even close to 100k really and I just got back from vacation with my boat. We had a great time.. It's time people woke up to reality a bit. Guess it all depends on location, location, location and holding down a job?

Most in my region I know of struggle because they have extremely skewed priorities on just what money is spent on. So when given advice to get rid of $200 month cable/satellite TV or go get cheap pay as you go cell phone for $50 month instead of latest gadget at $200 month and its suggested they actually should cook a meal instead of eating out or eating prepared meals and they have a shiny newish car or truck at $600 month or more...................................

When they complain I go down the list and they either get visibly angry or shutdown and wont acknowledge any logical discussion about finances. Its especially prevalent on cell phone issue for some reason as if that is some sort of modern day status symbol.

Haven't even got to those that dress their many children in the latest most expensive designer clothing and shoes yet house them in ramshackle sub-standard housing with tarps on roof, holes in walls and floors while constantly plowing them full of macaroni and cheese type products.

These are folks who are not deemed mentally off by society or drug addicted - just run of the mill people.

Yes there are poor that have not and did not put themselves into that situation but vast majority of citizens counted as being in this group have and will continue to make poor choices keeping themselves right where they are.

There are structural economic forces that do aggravate the problem such as a so-called moderate inflation rate at 3% which effectively doubles consumer prices every 10 years held as official policy from privately held Federal Reserve of which wages are always behind. Artificially low interest rates that completely nullify any benefit to saving money and encourage speculative activities with risk. A tax structure that encourages wanton spending for a replacement to a savings account (wanton spending = un-affordable # children, un-affordable housing and self imposed income limitation based upon so-called tax refund amounts or government benefits) these are policy changes needed to spur self-motivation rather than current self limiting modes.

Healthcare industry should suffer legal version of thermonuclear warfare and be rebuilt from ground up so that it once again constitutes less than 10% of GDP (traditional amount for nearly century before mid-seventies when third party insurers got involved in major way) never to be allowed to consume more which feeds only the greedy and does nothing to provide actual healthcare.

a reply to: Willtell

Oh and the homeless problem is mostly due to Democrat West Coast states like Cali, remove them and the problem is significantly improved. People just can't afford to live under the Democrat Cali rule.

If you all haven't realized, this is all a " setup " to keep you struggling or " barely making it " because otherwise, you'd have time to look at the cracks and wonder, why if you can keep up with you're crap, why the government needs so much of your money and people to fall behind in keeping up with their crap.

It's why oil an plastics are why electric cars and solar aren't are popular as you'd think

Why in many aspects, cryptocurrency is creating the very bypass to circumvent all the bs red tape above to allow for the flow of what needs too. Sadly, some sludge will " flow " too.

But the middle class, is no different than the other classes, its just a scaled economy that is different, and it's the locations that are really who is doing the economic segregation.

-----------Food Areas----------

look around at the restaurants, they tell the economy class of the area, and therefor the housing prices,
more drive thrus than sitdowns equal either a business district or a middle to lower class area

More sit down places, mean more upper class biz area and housing area

citys do the same, but by grocery stores, the ones that have fresh produce are where the more money is being spent for housing, you only tend to find 7/11 types at the other lesser costing places

------Travel--------

then, travel!, that's even worse, it's often more expensive, to travel from the lower income housing places than it is from the upper class places, metro routes are why, they aren't single shots for the most part, they make you " hop " costing more, when it's a straight shot for the upper.

It's gross, and the more highlighting we do, the better we will all be!

------What is boils down to------

More money could be made by the country, if more people worked more skilled jobs, higher tax brackets equate to more money paid into the system, so while the above is true, it's not in the " best " interest of the government, so why has it been allowed to go on for such a long time, should be the very answer to the question.... ----It's Desired----

Technology, technology, technology, and modern science?

What is it doing to relieve the suffering of people when because of it, technology and modern science, we have the capacity to make a bottom liner comfort level of existence for every human being on the planet yet we don’t use technology and modern science and the vast wealth humanity has accrued for that purpose...

A distorted idea of freedom adds to this misery. What? the freedom to steal and monopolize resources and technology BY THE FEW FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE FEW.

a reply to: Willtell

Because, you can't control people as easy, with so much freetime.

Wait till VR is perfected, then you will see a basic income take shape, an all our " basic needs " be met.

Because then you can control people, " act up, and no VR world / escape, for you "

If you want to know what "class" you are, read Experian's PDR on you (if you can get it). Here's a hint though: if you can't afford private school for your children, if you aren't putting away %20 of you "income" towards retirement, if you can't afford to save a minimum of $5000/per child/per year for college and if you don't self-finance most of your major purchases (except housing), you are not "middle class."

a reply to: 0zzymand0s

So like 8 people are middle class?

originally posted by: ClovenSky
a reply to: toysforadults

So what do you think? I understand our fiat is worth less with each passing year and obviously for the majority of us, wages haven't kept up with inflation. I am not hurting in today's world, but I can definitely say my fiat covers a lot less than it use to even 5 years ago.

I just had an hvac repair that needed a new fan motor & blade on an external unit from 1976. $870!!! I almost said # it and bought a window unit. But I guess with replacement costs being $4200-$4800 I should consider myself lucky.

How do we get housing costs down? Can this scenario ever correct without a major crash to realign reality?

Rapid transport. Everyone wants to live as close as possible to a campus site in order to reduce their commute. The rents for apartments next to the offices were around $4000, the salary of a senior staff engineers. Those were just a 10 minute walk or cycle. Project managers had already bought homes so they drove cars from the other side of the city. But others had long commutes to the other side/end of the Bay Area (San Franscisco->Menlo Park, or San Jose->Menlo Park. Those were two hours or more.

a reply to: 0zzymand0s

While I do agree with you, that's the " new middle class " the one that is really the upper class still, that is replacing the old middle class, that ironically used to be the old old upper class, and will someday soon, become the new poverty line.

Until, like I've said in other threads, they get VR devices down right, then magically, watch, universal basic income get rolled out, and instead of being held down with money, it's " having your VR, taking away ".

Jesus H Christ.

Lets quote a movie:


“I see in the fight club the strongest and smartest men who've ever lived. I see all this potential and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables, slaves with white collars, advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy # we don't need. We're the middle children of the history man, no purpose or place, we have no Great war, no Great depression, our great war is a spiritual war, our great depression is our lives, we've been all raised by television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires and movie gods and rock stars, but we won't and we're slowly learning that fact. and we're very very pissed off.”
― Fight Club

every bit of it true.

Quit living beyond your means. Quite worrying about how much you make and whether you are blue collar, white collar or any collar. Just F*cking live. You are so worried about your income and how it compares to the norm that you forgot to ask yourself if you are happy. You don't have to have millions to be happy. You don't have to have a "cush" job to be happy.

Quit buying what you don't need. Be in a job a you enjoy. Provide for a family if you have one. Be content with life rather than striving to be something you are not.

I am not Mr. Zuckerberg and I don't care to be. I don't need his wealth and could care less what he does in life. I don't care how much money he has or what he does on Friday nights.

Nothing but a bunch of sycophants.

originally posted by: Aazadan
a reply to: Blaine91555

Blue collar workers have never had it good.

...and yet, they are the only members of society who are indispensable.

The least important workers in our society are government. They produce nothing, they take what they need from those who do produce and yet they have all the power. A government by the people, for the people has always been a myth. The only essential services government provides are infrastructure, protection and the rule of law.

Housing prices and property appraisals are a man made illusion to keep each class in its place.

The child of a wealthy family falls on hard times, they simply move in with mom, dad or a sibling and nobody thinks anything bad of them for it. A person without that kind of safety net falls on hard times, they are scorned and no matter the cause it's always their own fault, which is a lie and absurd on its face and yet we being the tribal animals we are, eat it up. We turn on our own, drive them out and then blame them when they fall apart or turn to self medicating or unsavory life styles. We drive many into homelessness. We toss out the mentally ill into the streets and then wonder why they do the things they do.

originally posted by: toysforadults
a reply to: 0zzymand0s

So like 8 people are middle class?

Yes.