A long, steep drop for Americans' standard of living

[girl gone mad]

A long, steep drop for Americans' standard of living
http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/2011/1019/A-long-steep-drop-for-Americans-standard-of-living

Think life is not as good as it used to be, at least in terms of your wallet? You'd be right about that. The standard of living for Americans has fallen longer and more steeply over the past three years than at any time since the US government began recording it five decades ago.

Bottom line: The average individual now has $1,315 less in disposable income than he or she did three years ago at the onset of the Great Recession – even though the recession ended, technically speaking, in mid-2009. That means less money to spend at the spa or the movies, less for vacations, new carpeting for the house, or dinner at a restaurant.

In short, it means a less vibrant economy, with more Americans spending primarily on necessities. The diminished standard of living, moreover, is squeezing the middle class, whose restlessness and discontent are evident in grass-roots movements such as the tea party and "Occupy Wall Street" and who may take out their frustrations on incumbent politicians in next year's election.

[OhioChick]

1. A long, steep drop that will continue to spiral out of control

K&R

[abelenkpe]

4. Only if government pursues austerity

US could gut it's defense spending and subsidies to corporations and be in pretty damn good shape. Not that that's gonna happen. Just sayin'...

[RKP5637]

2. Frankly IMO many of the politicians can be dumped except for Bernie Sanders and some of

the other good ones. Many of them are worthless and unqualified for their jobs in congress other than to take $$$$$.

[abelenkpe]

8. Certainly but we should identify the bad ones

with the worst offenders at the top (conservadems) of the list and systematically replace them not throw all out with the bad. Also it would be wise to offer them one last chance to reform their evil corporate suck up ways and change or go. Many started off with good intentions but were forced to go along and get along or be pushed out.

[RKP5637]

15. Yep, Agree!!! n/t

[Atman]

3. The solution? JUST BE RICH!

It's so simple. If you're rich, you'll have a fancy-pants accountant who will make sure you pay no taxes, you'll have slave-laborers working your production line (probably in a foreign country) and everything will be groovy. Just be rich. Go on, pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Bootstraps made by Chinese slave labor and sold at Wal Mart.

Go fuck yourself, and quit complaining.

[redqueen]

5. "even though the recession ended, technically speaking, in mid-2009"

:mad:

[ThomWV]

6. Shit, if my income was within $20,000 a year of what I made 10 years ago I'd be happy as hell.

[TwilightGardener]

7. I see it locally. I am frequently the only customer at our local nursery, for example--

all the employees there know me by now. Not too many people seem to have money for fixing up their house, or gardening, or eating out, etc. But dammit, we are still RICH, what with our fridges and color teevees and Mr. Coffees and whatnot...

[kestrel91316]

9. My sister and BIL have a higher standard of living than my parents did.

I, OTOH, well..........

Let's just say that I am not a shining example of financial good fortune........lol. I will never have a home even remotely as large and nice as my parents did.

[KansDem]

10. "That means less money to spend at the spa or the movies, less for vacations..."

"...new carpeting for the house, or dinner at a restaurant."

Rather flippant comments! How 'bout less money to spend on a new furnace? Ours broke during the waning days of winter this year and we thought we would have it replaced by now. No way! Temperatures are now dipping into the 30s here in KC and we are still looking for ways to pay for a new furnace!

[leftstreet]

11. K&R

[NNN0LHI]

12. This is because our wages and benefits are now patterned after non-union workers wages and benefits

I am old enough to remember when it was the other way around and Americans' standard of living was improving every year. Back when we had strong manufacturing unions.

I can remember a time when the big news stories of the day were about decreasing class size and adding teachers in our schools rather than increasing class size and cutting teachers like it is now.

Anyone else old enough to remember those days?

Don

[RaleighNCDUer]

13. I'm making 4-5k less today than I was four years ago,

but rent and groceries and gas and heat continue to go up.

I have approximately $35 discretionary spending each month, now. Any little thing, and I'm pulling money out of my meager savings account.

It was not all that long ago that the expectation was an increase in income every years - even if a tiny one.

This is the new reality.

[chill_wind]

14. K & R.

[Mimosa]

16. This si sooo TRUE.

This is exactly my little family's situation. Things cost more, we have less income.

We can't be fooled into believing things are better than they were 3 or 8 years ago. It's worse.