[quote=temeculaguy]Yet despite all of the various hand wringing I’ve read throughout my life, the middle class in the U.S. today is as well off as it has ever been in history. With the exception of the lack of concubines and servants, most of us live as well as royalty did a few hundred years ago. Most of us live better than a Doctor or a lawyer did in the 1940’s or 1950’s, at least those of us who aren’t doctors and lawyers.
Be realistic, what was the middle class 30, 40 or 50 years ago? There’s a lot of complaining nowadays that a college degree doesn’t allow you to live worry free about money, but today, a college degree is not that exceptional, it’s kinda middle class. .[/quote]
TG makes a fine argument for hedonics.
the thing he misses is your grandad paid off his mortgage in 15 years.
you talk about the toys people have but not what they don’t have.
in 1970 a 30″ Color tube was expensive but college was cheap. in 1970 a hair stylist drove a POS chevy but could send a kid to State College.
now a Flat screen LCD is cheap and that stylist is blowing men in the back to pay for her loans on beauty school.
Sure TG has a great house and he pays 4X family income while his gtandad paid 2.5X.
Sure there are more calories. but there is less food. people have Type 2 diabetes like mad.
in the third world people are thin, here they re fat and diabetic.
