Can not built economy on unable and tight budget-rich your donation to gop is poison with your wealth. If you form cheaper customer with tighter budget that unable buy home and avoid having children that not growth help your stock that erosion cause death to your stock. You can not build economy on fewer. More Americans see middle class status slipping Wednesday, 2 Apr 2014 | 4:38 PM ET Since 2008, the number of people who call themselves middle class has fallen by nearly a fifth, according to a survey in January by the Pew Research Center, from 53 percent to 44 percent. Some 40 percent now identify as either lower-middle or lower class, compared with just 25 percent in February 2008. According to Gallup, the percentage of Americans who say theyre middle or upper-middle class fell eight points between 2008 and 2012, to 55 percent. And the most recent National Opinion Research Centers General Social Survey found that the vast proportion of Americans who call themselves middle or working class, though still high at 88 percent, is the lowest in the surveys 40-year history. Its fallen four percentage points since the recession began in 2007. The trend reflects a widening gap between the richest Americans and everyone else, one thats emerged gradually over decades and accelerated with the Great Recession. The difference between the income earned by the wealthiest 5 percent of Americans and by a median-income household has risen 24 percent in 30 years, according to the Census Bureau. (Watch: All America Survey: Why are people poor or wealthy) Whether or not people see themselves as middle class, theres no agreed-upon definition of the term. In part, its a state of mind. Incomes or lifestyles that feel middle class in Kansas can feel far different in Connecticut. People with substantial incomes often identify as middle class if they live in urban centers with costly food, housing and transportation. In any case, individuals and families who feel theyve slipped from the middle class are likely to spend and borrow less. Such a pullback, in turn, squeezes the economy, which is fueled mainly by consumer spending. How they think is reflected in how they act, said Richard Morin, a senior editor at the Pew Research Center. PLAY VIDEO Pro-growth tax policies strengthen middle class: Pro Sen. Ron Johnson, (R-Wis) Senate Budget Committee, weighs in on a robust economy and pro-growth tax reform policy. People are generally slow to acknowledge downward mobility. Many regard themselves as middle class even if their incomes fall well above or below the average. Experts say the rise in Americans who feel theyve slipped below the middle class suggests something deeply rooted. More people now think its harder to achieve the American dream than thought so several decades ago, said Mark Rank, a sociology professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Three years ago, Kristina Feldotte, 47, and her husband earned a combined $80,000. She considered herself solidly middle class. The couple and their four children regularly vacationed at a lake near their home in Saginaw, Mich. But in August 2012, Feldotte was laid off from her job as a special education teacher. Shes since managed to find only part-time teaching work. Though her husband still works as a truck salesman, their income has sunk by more than half to $36,000. Now were on the upper end of lower class, Feldotte said. Americans self-perception coincides with data documenting a shrinking middle class: The percentage of households with income within 50 percent of the median—one way to define a broad middle class—fell from 50 percent in 1970 to 42 percent in 2010. The Pew survey didnt ask respondents to specify their income. Still, Pew has found in the past that people who call themselves middle class generally fit the broad definitions that economists use. (Watch: Yellen: Long-term unemployment exceptionally high) Roughly 8.4 percent of respondents to the National Opinion Research Centers survey, last conducted in 2012, said they consider themselves lower class. Thats the surveys highest percentage ever, up from 5.4 percent in 2006. NORC is a social science research organization at the University of Chicago. Tom Smith, director of the NORC, said even slight shifts are significant. Class self-identification is traditionally one of the most stable measures in the survey, he said. By contrast to the most recent recession, the severe 1981-82 downturn had little effect on class self-identification in Smiths survey. Why do so many no longer regard themselves as middle class? A key reason is that the recession eliminated 8.7 million jobs. A disproportionate number were middle-income positions. Those losses left what economists describe as a hollowed out workforce, with more higher- and lower-paying and fewer middle-income jobs. Rob McGahen, 30, hasnt yet found a job that paid as well as the purchasing agent position at Boeings defense division that he left in 2011. Nervous about the sustainability of that job because of government defense cuts, McGahen quit after buying a bar near his St. Louis home. The bar eventually went bankrupt and cost him his house. He and his wife moved to Pensacola, Fla., where hes had little luck finding work in defense contracting. Now, he works in the produce section of a supermarket. His wife earns the bulk of their income as a speech pathologist. Their household income has been cut in half, from $110,000 to $55,000, and he and his wife have put off having children. Its definitely been a step back, McGahen said. PLAY VIDEO Long-term unemployment is persistent problem: CEO Weve had consistent job creation but not significant enough to bring down the unemployment problem, says Marc Morial, National Urban League president & CEO, with Ron Christie, Christie Strategies founder & CEO, discussing the jobs report and the strength of the U.S. economy. Now living in an apartment, he misses the couples three-bedroom house on a quiet cul-de-sac in a St. Louis suburb. Home ownership is among factors economists cite as markers of middle-class status. Others include being able to vacation, help children pay for college and save for a secure retirement. Yet stagnant middle-class pay, combined with steep price increases for college, health care and homes, have made those expenses harder to afford. Median household income, adjusted for inflation, hasnt budged since 1996, according to the Census Bureau. Average college tuition has soared 174 percent in that time. Many of the formerly middle class are still struggling with student debt. McGahen, who has an MBA, estimates hell be making $600 payments on student loans each month for the next decade. Feldotte, with two masters degrees, says she has lots and lots of debt. And she isnt prepared to help her children pay for college. Theres no money to help them, she said. Some people feel theyve fallen out of the middle class even as their incomes have remained stable, because their costs have risen. One is Richard Timmerman, 66, a retired postal employee in River Falls, Wis. Hes been living off his pension since retiring five years ago. His wife, a sales manager at a hotel and conference center, hasnt had a raise in that time. The recession hammered the hotels business, though its slowly recovering. Yet his cost of living has risen in the past decade or so. Gas prices have surged over that time. So has food. And only this year did the value of Timmermans retirement savings regain its level of six years ago. I see my position in the social structure having gone down a notch, Timmerman said. He considers himself lower-middle class, compared with middle class a few years ago. A slowly improving U.S. economy could lift some people back into the middle class. Still, the recession and slow recovery have left permanent scars. McGahen and his wife are trying to rebuild their savings. They no longer have credit cards. Timmerman travels much less than he thought he would in retirement. I have really beat myself up a lot over the last 2 1/2 years, McGahen said. Until I get myself up and going again and in a good place ... it is tough.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Sep 2014 18:02:33 +0000
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