Forum Post: 1 in 2 Americans Poor / Low Income
Posted 12 years ago on Dec. 15, 2011, 9:58 a.m. EST by Crimzon
(91)
from Arizona City, AZ
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
Thats half of the u.s. population, If your one of the "few" who don't understand why Occupy is around, well now you do.
Still, the rich get richer. In fact, they are getting even richer even faster.
The ugly truth. America's wealth is STILL being concentrated. When the rich get too rich, the poor get poorer. These latest figures prove it. AGAIN.
According to the Social Security Administration, 50 percent of U.S. workers made less than $26,364 in 2010. In addition, those making less than $200,000, or 99 percent of Americans (actually more like 98%), saw their earnings fall by $4.5 billion collectively.
The sobering numbers were a far cry from what was going on for the richest one percent of Americans.
The incomes of the top one percent of the wage scale in the U.S. rose in 2010; and their collective wage earnings jumped by $120 billion. In addition, those earning at least $1 million a year in wages, which is roughly 93,000 Americans, reported payroll income jumped 22 percent from 2009. Overall, the economy has shed 5.2 million jobs since the start of the Great Recession in 2007. It’s the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression in the 1930’s.
Not to mention, around 40% of america is also on some sort of government assistance program
That number is only going to increase as more people are driven into poverty.
The problem is they never fixed anything with the Great depression. USA operated in credit/deficit since. HJR 192, in 1933 was the "chapter 11" of us, bankruptcy protection and re-org. The leadership of FDR and ideas and how as a "manager" of the company rallied us to work. Projects were funded, commerce ensued and we bounced back. Problem is operating with a credit card has a limit. Social security tax and payroll taxes witheld gave money back, insuring the banks, etc and confidence rebuilt the economy. The debt ceiling, our credit limit, we now keep hitting the limit. We never fixed what got us there and that is the real problem, credit/debt....No hard currency. They had no way to fix it and now they just transfer assets. We had unions and factories, OSHA /EPA regulations etc to protect environment and people. SO they sent it overseas to China/India where they work for fraction and the guys at the top make out. They sold us out, and create service/commerce/credit based economy and eventually that ended. Now the Social security is being withdrawn, taxes lowered, wars, expensive energy, interest on the debt mounts since 1933, and it is a bottomless pit. More social programs less taxes, more operational costs, it spirals and this time will be worse as you say. Way worse, we have no companies that make anything left here except auto/marine, RV, etc. Construction equipment, airplanes, some stuff ok. But if economy slows, this slows and spirals , we are there too. It is gonna get bad for bit people....