The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
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The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
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Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#2I've been making this point for a while. In particular, there is pretty solid data showing that immigration drags down the average hourly wage, based on longitudinal data which excludes them:
http://www.chrisstucchio.com/blog/2011/immigrants_simpsons_p...
(The data compares the income of Americans to that of their parents, thereby excluding people who's parents are not Americans.)
Note that this observation (by itself) is not an argument against immigration. http://openborders.info/compositional-effects/
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#3All I see is a bunch of handwaving and distractions from what is admitted to be a real issue at the start.
Imagine we still had slavery in the US in 2013. Who would argue that slavery is perfectly ok because, by golly, slaves live longer and have access to nicer clothes and improved healthcare? And look, we had to deal with an influx of new slaves, so it's actually their fault! Really, those are your arguments?
After seeing this and the hopeless single mother making $260k infographic, WSG seems to be pretty out of touch.
[I'm not trying to compare low wage workers to slaves. At all. I'm making an analogy concerning red herrings.]
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#4>Consider the electronic products that every middle-class teenager can now afford—iPhones, iPads, iPods and laptop computers.
No teenager can afford this. They, or their parents, go into debt for it.
And that is the problem. The ability of middle class Americans to buy what they are implored by our consumerist society to buy has fallen sharply. General unhappiness and massive amounts of personal debt used to finance knickknacks is the outcome.
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#5>Consider the electronic products that every middle-class teenager can now afford—iPhones, iPads, iPods and laptop computers. No teenager can afford this. They, or their parents, go into debt for it. And that is the problem. The ability of middle class Americans to buy what they are implored by our consumerist society to buy has fallen sharply. General unhappiness and massive amounts of personal debt used to finance…
Most middle-class teenagers with even a part-time job could afford these items.
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#6tl;dr: the consumer price index only makes it look like the middle class is suffering. To wit:
1) They have access to a higher quality of goods. 2) Don't forget deductions for health care and 2 weeks of vacation! 3) We pay women and minorities less, and since they've been entering the workforce in bigger numbers, it only looks like white males are being paid the same since the 60s.
Seriously?! Can we please keep politics off the front page? Or else we'll all be subjected to countless polemic summaries like this one and who wants that?
(But honestly, fuck this article.)
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#7The article points out a 3 reason why the "flat-wage of the middle class" idea is a myth:
1. CPI underestimating product improvements. 2. Increase in fringe benefits. 3. Influx of lesser skilled workers.
Product improvements and fringe benefits effect both middle and upper class living standard equally. These two improvements would increase both upper and middle classes equally, so I can't see how these would make middle income workers better of relative to upper income workers.
The third point, an influx of lesser skilled workers "women and immigrants" as the article puts it, does not change the fact that the middle class's wages are stagnent, it just is a changing of demographics.
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#8The article points out a 3 reason why the "flat-wage of the middle class" idea is a myth: 1. CPI underestimating product improvements. 2. Increase in fringe benefits. 3. Influx of lesser skilled workers. Product improvements and fringe benefits effect both middle and upper class living standard equally. These two improvements would increase both upper and middle classes equally, so I can't see how these would make mi…
The third point, an influx of lesser skilled workers "women and immigrants" as the article puts it, does not change the fact that the middle class's wages are stagnent, it just is a changing of demographics.
But it does change a key consequence of the claim that middle class wages are stagnant. That claim is often used to argue that "the middle class is no better off"; but if the stagnant wages are due to changing demographics, then all the individual people in the middle class may in fact be better off. Some used to make the average wage and now make more; some used to make nothing at all or made the average wage in a much poorer country, and are now making less than the average wage here, which is still an improvement for them. The point is that "average wage" is a poor measure of how individual people are actually doing, since it really reflects changing demographics, not changes in individual fortunes.
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#9All I see is a bunch of handwaving and distractions from what is admitted to be a real issue at the start. Imagine we still had slavery in the US in 2013. Who would argue that slavery is perfectly ok because, by golly, slaves live longer and have access to nicer clothes and improved healthcare? And look, we had to deal with an influx of new slaves, so it's actually their fault! Really, those are your arguments? After…
The opinion and news sections of the WSJ used to always have a wall between them, editorially. That this article is appearing in the op-eds is far less surprising than the 260k infographic.
I wonder if the wall is being worn down now that RM owns it.
EDIT: People who are interested in the middle class squeeze should really check out Elizabeth Warren's book The Two-Income Trap.
Re: The Myth of a Stagnant Middle Class
#10>Consider the electronic products that every middle-class teenager can now afford—iPhones, iPads, iPods and laptop computers. No teenager can afford this. They, or their parents, go into debt for it. And that is the problem. The ability of middle class Americans to buy what they are implored by our consumerist society to buy has fallen sharply. General unhappiness and massive amounts of personal debt used to finance…
Most middle-class teenagers with even a part-time job could afford these items.
Because they live at home and are subsidized by their parents.