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"About to?" It already is brutal for the bottom half. And the 90th percentile is too low: people in that range are paupers by comparison even to the top 5. I th
by sidlls 8y ago
"About to?" It already is brutal for the bottom half. And the 90th percentile is too low: people in that range are paupers by comparison even to the top 5. I think the 95th to the 99th percentile is the region to look at. There are some seriously deluded individuals in that group who think they won't be on the outside with the rest of us when the top pull the gates closed behind them.
- 0xCMP 8y agoExtremely deluded
- Fricken 8y agoAmerica is a nation of temporarily inconvenienced millionaires. This disconnect between expectations and reality is one of it's biggest problems. You can visit any number of poorer nations where being poor does is not a punishment, it not equate to a difficult or miserable life, because society, it's services and it's infrastructure are all built to accomodate people of modest means. In America is designed for you to have a McMansion with a two car garage, and if you can't meet the bottom line you either go into debt to pretend you're meeting it or you're cast to the fringes where you struggle just to survive in a world that is not designed to accomodate People of modest means.
- baybal2 8y agoI capture the essence of the matter perfectly in that last sentence.
- jelgt2011 8y agoThe (disputed) John Steinbeck quote you might be referring to: "Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat, but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires"
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- gutnor 8y agoIf it take income in the UK as an example. • 50th percentile is 21900, • 90th is "only" 50600, • 95th is 70400, that's the salary required for the 220K average UK house. • 96th is 78800 • 97th is 91300 • 98th is 11000 • 99th is 159000, that's the salary required for the 500K average London house. It really only takes off from 97th percents. Wealth diagram is probably going to look like that too.
- gytdev 8y agoYou mean per year? Also I think you miss one zero in the 9th. Can You please also provide a source?
- gutnor 8y agoThat is indeed per year in GBP. That is published by the UK Government directly: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/percentile-points-from-1-to-99-for-total-income-before-and-after-tax https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/percentile-points-f... I noticed that I used an older version, so the number have increased a little. The trend is the same though, with 50th: 23200 90th: 53100 95th: 75000 and taking off after that.
- amorousf00p 8y agoYou are right about one thing: If you are not in the 1% being 95%-99% is being out in the cold. Debt being a cold bed fellow.
- DoreenMichele 8y agoIf only it were merely a cold bed fellow. It's downright vampiric.