What is the middle class???

[Skidmore]

I found this website which seeks to define the class, and just the sheer variety of parameters for defining it has helped me to understand why people seem to be confused about what income strata they belong to.

http://www.ehow.com/about_5212740_average-middle-class-salary-range_.html

[taught_me_patience]

1. It really depends where you live

generally, I define it as $40k-150k for a family.

[Skidmore]

4. According to your range,

we cracked middle class just barely some years ago. Now we are solidly below it, and we know lots of people in our income range.

[taught_me_patience]

9. Do you feel like your are middle class? n/t

[Skidmore]

12. Nope.

I barely felt middle class when we were middle class. Right now, I feel one shove away from homelessness in spite of the fact we have some savings and equity in our home and we are pretty much debt free. One illness or unemployment would be catastrophic.

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

2. What is the middle class? It's shrinking.

[Davis_X_Machina]

3. The second, third, and fourth quintiles...

...of household income.

[katnapped]

5. According to Charlie Gibson...

People making $250,000 (if not more)

[county worker]

6. I like to say that the middle class is made up of people who

need to spend every cent they earn the week it is paid on bills and living expenses but are above the poverty level and those who manage to save a little each week. I don't have exact amounts.

[T Wolf]

10. Very good definition. Working class people have the same need to spend immediately what

they earn but are always one illness or car repair or something relatively "minor" away from falling into poverty.

If the income disappears, both groups fall into poverty very quickly.

[county worker]

13. I got that idea in economics class.

There is a graph I think it is called the savings and income graph.


There is a line just above the bottom of the graph where at that income and less there is dissavings meaning they don't earn enough to live on.

Above that line people earn just enough to live on and on up to those who can save.

[valerief]

7. It's used to describe the not wealthy. It's pretty meaningless, I think. nt

[onehandle]

8. A bunch of losers.

If your net worth is less than Snooki's, you are a loser and am destined to be Soylent Green.

All hail our billionaire overlords.


on edit: I'm in a dark mood.

[blindpig]

11. An ephemeral thing....

which exists by and for the convenience of the ruling class. When they need one there is one to provide the necessary services of the required amount.

At the end of the day though there are only two classes, the owners and the workers.

[Blue Meany]

14. It's a class of workers that used to exist in the US, but which has

been replaced by other classes such as debt slaves, the working poor, the homeless, the unemployed, and illegal immigrants with no civil rights.

[Warpy]

15. Middle class traditionally meant enough disposable income

above and beyond subsistence living to save for retirement, educate the children, travel once a year on vacation, and afford at least part time household help of some description, whether a once a week maid or a lawn or pool service.

Working class had a tough time educating the kids, went camping on vacations, relied on pensions instead of savings and investment for retirement, and did all their own work at home. They could, however, manage to save a little for emergencies.

The working poor barely survived paycheck to paycheck and were one minor emergency away from insolvency.

Thanks to the policy of actively suppressing wages over the last 40 years, most of us are now working class or working poor.