In the last 19 years workers wages have been cut dramatically by inflation

originally posted by: Bluntone22
a reply to: Puppylove

That is true in some respects.
Culture has changed in that time too.
June cleaver stayed home and cooked.
They had one car.
They had smaller homes and took shorter trips.

Was it better then?
Is it better now?

There are many that would like smaller and cheaper homes across the country but the NIMBY and my property values will drop put a stop to it.

There was some land in town that was going to be used for a new mobile home park, and homeowners put up a stink and shut the project down.

originally posted by: Edumakated


A big issue is that a lot of people put themselves in a hole that is hard to get out of such as having children out of wedlock or before they can actually afford kids.

You start to add up poor life choices and they do effect you greatly to the point your 40 and wonder why your life sucks so bad. Many times it isn't that one big thing, but dozens of little ones that individually may not be a career killer, but add up over time.

a reply to: jacobe001

Construction jobs have been taken over by illegals and immigrants. As a result pay has stagnated. It used to be a great job for a lot of people, now most Americans would never do it. Illegal immigration working as intended.

originally posted by: contextual

originally posted by: XCrycek
Of course it has, and it's not only in the USA but in Europe as well.
But hey, people think middle class is thriving if Dow Jones is in green.

Europe is dominated by Capitalist governments, it's no surprise workers are working for peanuts.
Getting rid of those unions hasnt worked out too well has it.
Every brexit talk head is now saying people voted to wreck the economy, lose jobs and see wages stagnate now, the EU blows mucho money trying to prop up wrecked economies like Greece and sees knock on effects, America voted in trump despite obvious warnings he doesn't understand real world money, flat taxes never work.
People keep voting in Capitalists with failed ideas and wonder why nothing changes, circle of life innit.

Capitalists only care about profits, not the country or its people which goes against the Constitution.
It was Capitalists that opened up "Free Trade" with China. I had many arguments with them over the consequences it would have. So many said, if a China man can make a widget cheaper than you can, you are being overpaid. And look at the results.

originally posted by: OccamsRazor04
a reply to: jacobe001

Construction jobs have been taken over by illegals and immigrants. As a result pay has stagnated. It used to be a great job for a lot of people, now most Americans would never do it. Illegal immigration working as intended.

I blame the cheap labor express.
They are at the forefront of wanting illegals for cheap labor.

There has been a steady stream of lobbyists for business lobbying Washington DC to just make them all legal.

Investors are all for it as well.
Anything that depresses wages and puts more money in their pockets is smiled upon.

a reply to: dfnj2015

Over here in the UK this has been going on a lot longer than 19 years, since the 1980's in fact.

But we have had a growing disparity in wages between workers and lower management and above with the top levels of employment such as directors etc having grossly outpaced the rate of inflation with there wage rises over the same time period while lower level workers such as Factor Workers, Security Staff etc have had there wages in real term's slashed and in many cases they have not even received an annual increase despite the increased cost of living.

It also varied by region in the UK despite the fact that as a whole it is far smaller than many of your states in the US in geographical term's.

If they didn't steal our rightfully earned wages by income tax, the problem would easily be solved. We allow them to steal our money, which we earned in exchange for our labor, and nobody has a right to take a penny from us, in any way.

They claim income tax is for our benefit, our society, etc. How does it help all of us by stealing our money? It is the very opposite!

I was bringing home $300 a week in 1994 at my summer job in high school. I was living like a king that summer. It felt awesome I didn't want to go back to school that fall. Gas was $0.90 a gallon. A pack of smokes was $2. I could eat out at McDonalds for $5. Money went a lot further back then.

Starting around 2005 everything at the grocery store starting shrinking in quantity. We started getting less for our money. I don't call it the great recession I call it the great contraction. In the 90's everything was being super sized. At McDonalds if you super sized for $0.30 more you a gallon of pop and 5 potato's of fries.

When the market imploded in 2008 they printed off trillions and added it to the national debt. The national debt isn't imaginary numbers. When it grows that's our purchasing power going down the toilet. Add in the fact wages have been stagnant and this is what you get.

My grandfather had an 8th grade education. The same job he did now they want you to have 4 year of collage. I know what my grandparents had and I got a taste of it in the 90's. I've watched it all get systematically destroyed so those at the top can increase their wealth.

The middle class are afraid of the poor. The rich use the poor as a weapon to scare them. I guarantee the middle class has more in common with someone working at TacoBell then someone eating $10,000 and ounce beluga caviar.

it's called money velocity

fred.stlouisfed.org...

for those of you who need a visual reference check out the St Louis Fed, this is the easiest way to refute the nonsense anecdotes

Economies that exhibit a higher velocity of money relative to others tend to be more developed. The velocity of money is also known to fluctuate with business cycles. When an economy is in an expansion, consumers and businesses tend to more readily spend money causing the velocity of money to increase. When an economy is contracting, consumers and businesses are usually more reluctant to spend and the velocity of money is lower.

Since the velocity of money is typically correlated with business cycles, it can also be correlated with key indicators. Therefore, the velocity of money will usually rise with GDP and inflation. Alternatively, it is usually expected to fall when key economic indicators like GDP and inflation are falling in a contracting economy.

www.investopedia.com...

a reply to: Edumakated

So all the broken, buggy and useless *snip* from China? I'd gladly pay twice as much for a TV if I could get my medical care at a reasonable cost.

Truth, inflation has dramatically hurt the American low and middle class. I remember in 1995 teachers complain about a 40k salary, in 2019 that's a pretty standard starting rate for teachers. The 15$ minimum wage will only hurt this further. Low level employees get a bump to 15/hr, managers and mid level staff see no growth in wages. Business increase the cost of goods to stay relevant with the higher cost of wages, and now people making 35-60k a year are paying MORE and getting LESS. The people on the bottom getting 15/hr are getting less hours and saw their cost of living increase... Look at NYC. Businesses cutting hours, hospitality/service work is drying up. A one bedroom apartment with no bathroom or oven is 1,500$ a month (that's a deal in many neighborhoods!) A coffee in Manhattan is 3.50-7$ easily, a few miles out, 1.50-2.00$. Countless examples of how wages have weakened while goods only go up, never down. I'll give you they've done well to keep gas down so low in America, that could have hurt big time, and is part of how they have us fooled.

THIS is an issue worth discussing and solving together, NOW. I don't care about Orange man bad anymore, please politicians earn your worth or get voted out!

To the poster saying consumer electronics are cheaper... what are you talking about?! Buying your 1000$ iPhone every 10 months, tablets laptops designed to break after a few years or have software lose compatibility with hardware after a few years, forcing you to buy new product! Electronic goods aren't going down in cost, those industries are growing...

a reply to: dfnj2015

Its a very interesting conversation, all of what you said is true and many here have stories we could share to relate. I agree and have seen how my grandparents "struggled" with money have multiple homes, convertibles and other cars, take multiple cruises and trips annually, I hope my "struggle" takes me as far as it did them but I don't see the purchasing power coming...


reply to: wantsome