- Nov 23, 2021
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The American middle class is stable in size, but losing ground financially to upper-income families
Middle-income Americans' financial gains between 2011 and 2016 were modest compared with upper-income Americans' gains, widening the income disparity between the groups.
www.pewresearch.org
First off, how are they defining “middle income”?
What they do is to take median household income (meaning that half of households are above it and half are below it). And then they say, if you’re from 2/3s median to double, you’re “middle income.” And yes, if we keep measuring the same way over time, we can see some trends.
And notice that more people have moved upward than downward.
What they’re classifying as “upper income” has increased from 14 to 19% of the population from 1971 to 2016, during which time “lower income” increased from 25 to 29%. So, on balance a good thing? I don’t think so. It’s a slow pulling apart of the middle class. And then, the question:
Why is the political anger so much greater than this measured reality?
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