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The middle class is shrinking just about everywhere in America
The devil, as usual, is in the details. While Pew's summary talks about the middle class, the full paper clarifies that the study is about income, not class:
The terms “middle income” and “middle class” are often used interchangeably ... But being middle class can connote more than income, be it a college education, white-collar work, economic security, homeownership, or having certain social and political values. Class could also be a state of mind ... This report uses household income to group people. For that reason, the term “middle income” is used more often than not.
As far as income goes, it seems that the wealthier folk (as well as the people here) are being shortchanged:
Income is defined as money income received (exclusive of certain money receipts, such as capital gains)
If Hillary gets her way regarding min wage ($12/hr, $24K/year), then single full time workers will be bumping right up against the middle class. Excuse me, middle income. "A one-person household needed only $24,000 to $72,000 to be middle income". The paper is solid, but Lake Wobegon-like results suggest that one take a closer look at what the figures mean.
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Regards,
Ted
Middle Class Shrinks in 203 of 229 Metropolitan Areas:
https://mishtalk.com/2016/05/12/middle-class-shrinks-in-203-of-229-metropolitan-areas/