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Although almost everyone is better off in material terms than they were two generations ago, I fear that the level of wealth required to live a "comfortable" li

Although almost everyone is better off in material terms than they were two generations ago, I fear that the level of wealth required to live a "comfortable" life may have outpaced that increase. How many hours does a blue collar worker have to put in to live close to a grocery store and good schools? How much time do the working poor spend commuting? If you break your arm, what percentage of your income will be consumed by medical costs? I don't have any data on this, but it's my hunch about why there's so much economic resentment these days.

parasubvert 11y ago
"How many hours does a blue collar worker have to put in to live close to a grocery store and good schools?" Depends if they work in a unionized industry. "If you break your arm, what percentage of your income will be consumed by medical costs?" In most industrial countries, including the US after the ACA, very little, because of health insurance. "there's so much economic resentment these days." That's inequality. When everyone around you is poor, except for a few rich folks you don't see often, it's not as big a deal. When you're constantly exposed to the things you don't/can't have, that can lead to resentment. This goes back to your first sentence: "Although almost everyone is better off in material terms than they were two generations ago, I fear that the level of wealth required to live a "comfortable" life may have outpaced that increase." In the US, Median Income peaked in the 1970's and has been flat. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United_States#/media/File:U.S._Hourly_Wages_-_Real_or_Adjusted_for_Inflation_1964-2014.png https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United... The poor (in the U.S. anyway) are relatively worse off than they were 2 generations ago - the bottom 50% have seen very little growth in income in 50 years, while the top 50% have grown a lot more. http://www.russellsage.org/sites/all/files/chartbook/Income%20and%20Earnings.pdf http://www.russellsage.org/sites/all/files/chartbook/Income%... Not all countries are as bad as the US, particularly Canada or Europe, because they have strong redistribution systems (health and social insurance, etc.). But the trends aren't great.
- soccerdave 11y ago
  I am self-employed and pay $6000 a year for high deductible health insurance for my family that has a $5000 deductible. So if my child breaks their arm and that is my only expense that year, then I paid $11,000 for their broken arm. Not cheap by any means. I'm sure lots of people on this forum work for companies that cover their whole cost of insurance and are out of touch with costs, but the "Affordable" Care Act has not made health insurance more affordable.
  - infinite8s 11y ago
    Insurance doesn't work that way. If you had a heart condition which required operation (so maybe 100k) you would also have paid 11k. You need to average over all expected outcomes to calculate whether it was affordable or expensive. In other countries (Europe and Canada) that 11k comes out as taxes instead of direct and indirect insurance costs.

parasubvert 11y ago

"How many hours does a blue collar worker have to put in to live close to a grocery store and good schools?" Depends if they work in a unionized industry. "If you break your arm, what percentage of your income will be consumed by medical costs?" In most industrial countries, including the US after the ACA, very little, because of health insurance. "there's so much economic resentment these days." That's inequality. When everyone around you is poor, except for a few rich folks you don't see often, it's not as big a deal. When you're constantly exposed to the things you don't/can't have, that can lead to resentment. This goes back to your first sentence: "Although almost everyone is better off in material terms than they were two generations ago, I fear that the level of wealth required to live a "comfortable" life may have outpaced that increase." In the US, Median Income peaked in the 1970's and has been flat. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United_States#/media/File:U.S._Hourly_Wages_-_Real_or_Adjusted_for_Inflation_1964-2014.png https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United... The poor (in the U.S. anyway) are relatively worse off than they were 2 generations ago - the bottom 50% have seen very little growth in income in 50 years, while the top 50% have grown a lot more. http://www.russellsage.org/sites/all/files/chartbook/Income%20and%20Earnings.pdf http://www.russellsage.org/sites/all/files/chartbook/Income%... Not all countries are as bad as the US, particularly Canada or Europe, because they have strong redistribution systems (health and social insurance, etc.). But the trends aren't great.

soccerdave 11y ago
I am self-employed and pay $6000 a year for high deductible health insurance for my family that has a $5000 deductible. So if my child breaks their arm and that is my only expense that year, then I paid $11,000 for their broken arm. Not cheap by any means. I'm sure lots of people on this forum work for companies that cover their whole cost of insurance and are out of touch with costs, but the "Affordable" Care Act has not made health insurance more affordable.
- infinite8s 11y ago
  Insurance doesn't work that way. If you had a heart condition which required operation (so maybe 100k) you would also have paid 11k. You need to average over all expected outcomes to calculate whether it was affordable or expensive. In other countries (Europe and Canada) that 11k comes out as taxes instead of direct and indirect insurance costs.