Booming economy? Americans are still BROKE-BROKE

[hal9000]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1016406363533201411

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/ev8gyz/its-no-accident-americans-are-still-broke-in-a-booming-economy?utm_source=vicenewstwitter

Populist appeals to Americans angry at their place in the world powered Donald Trump to the presidency. But even though Trump has spent his time in the White House pushing policies that benefit the monied classes as opposed to workers, it remains a simple truth that it's a lot harder to get by than it used to be. As many, many newspaper stories, magazine articles, and books have documented over the past few decades, it sucks to be a worker in America. Jobs are tough to get and tougher to hold onto, pay has stagnated, and debt—student loans, credit cards, whatever—is out of control. It wasn’t exactly insane to walk into a voting booth in November 2016 and conclude that the system, as presided over at least in part by Democrats was, in fact, rigged.

A new report out this month from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) makes it clearer than ever that this dynamic of workers falling behind is not some kind of statistical aberration or case of bad luck. Policymakers in America have made it a hell of a lot harder, by design, to move up in the world compared to the way things work in other countries. And despite low unemployment and other signs of a booming economy, it’s probably only going to get worse from here.

The OECD report mostly looks at data in the years leading up roughly to the time of Trump’s win in 2016. It paints a dark picture of keeping your head above water in modern America. Among other things, as detailed analyses at the Washington Post and New York have already pointed out, workers' share of the national income is uniquely low—and has fallen uniquely fast—in the US. The government also provides much less support for fired or laid-off people than other countries do, and that lack of support can haunt the unemployed for the rest of their lives. Income inequality (in terms of workers earning less than half the median) is in fact worse in the US than almost anywhere else in the developed world. And thanks to a decades-long war on organized labor, fewer workers are covered by collective bargaining agreements than workers in almost every other OECD nation.

That last point is a key one, since unionization rates help dictate everything else in American life, from how good wages are at nonunion jobs to the kinds of policies and politicians we get. As a result of a recent Supreme Court ruling, unions are about to get smaller, which means fewer Americans will be covered by collective bargaining agreements, and more will be at the mercy of their bosses. Another recent Supreme Court ruling blocked class-action lawsuits by workers, which will give them fewer ways to fight wage theft.

 

[Billy Ocean]

Everything in the above makes sense except the union part

Unions will be forced to better advocate for their members or they will lose members

If people opt out, it will be because they don’t see the value in paying for union representation

 

[Autoprax]

People will opt out to get the extra money.

They still want the union benefits though.

 

[hal9000]

People will opt out to get the extra money.

They still want the union benefits though.

and they'll still be broke. that extra few hundred a month isn't gonna mean sh*t.

 

[hal9000]

http://www.usdebtclock.org

 

[the janitor]

also this:

40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense

https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/22/pf/emergency-expenses-household-finances/index.html

and this

Most Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency

https://money.cnn.com/2018/01/18/pf/lack-of-savings-cover-unexpected-expense/index.html

 

[hal9000]

how big can the debt bubble get?

 

[obslop]

the wealth gap and its destructive impact on America will be the issue that changes everything for my son, his generation, and those that follow.

 

[Billy Ocean]

The backlash is already happening across the West

 

[Ifallalot]

The wealth gap comes from cheap and easy credit and the debt that creates.

The banks, Fed, and government are all equally responsible as of course those who actually spent the borrowed money are. Since bankers are making money hand over fist and since both central banks and governments worldwide are depending on a consumption based economy we probably won’t see any of this alleviated before disaster

 

[Billy Ocean]

The next recession is going to be a shitshow

Anything could happen

 

[Autoprax]

also this:

40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense

https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/22/pf/emergency-expenses-household-finances/index.html

and this

Most Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency

https://money.cnn.com/2018/01/18/pf/lack-of-savings-cover-unexpected-expense/index.html

This bums me out.

If at all posible I recomendaciones that people inherit money.

It really helps out.

 

[Surfdog]

also this:

40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense

https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/22/pf/emergency-expenses-household-finances/index.html

and this

Most Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency

https://money.cnn.com/2018/01/18/pf/lack-of-savings-cover-unexpected-expense/index.html

In reality, I don't think these figures (adjusted for inflation) have changed much in the last 40+ years.

 

[Duffy LaCoronilla]

also this:

40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense

https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/22/pf/emergency-expenses-household-finances/index.html

and this

Most Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency

https://money.cnn.com/2018/01/18/pf/lack-of-savings-cover-unexpected-expense/index.html

How many of those people are making car payments, cell phone bill payments, have maxed out credit cards, go out to dinner........?

 

[the janitor]

also this:

40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense

https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/22/pf/emergency-expenses-household-finances/index.html

and this

Most Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency

https://money.cnn.com/2018/01/18/pf/lack-of-savings-cover-unexpected-expense/index.html

How many of those people are making car payments, cell phone bill payments, have maxed out credit cards, go out to dinner........?

Probably lots, which doesn't change the fact that a big part of our population are one hiccup away from serious problems.

 

[casa_mugrienta]

http://www.usdebtclock.org

RON PAUL IS A LOON

 

[Duffy LaCoronilla]

also this:

40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense

https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/22/pf/emergency-expenses-household-finances/index.html

and this

Most Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency

https://money.cnn.com/2018/01/18/pf/lack-of-savings-cover-unexpected-expense/index.html

How many of those people are making car payments, cell phone bill payments, have maxed out credit cards, go out to dinner........?

Probably lots, which doesn't change the fact that a big part of our population are one hiccup away from serious problems.

Yes, and my contention is that most of the people who are in that situation got there by making poor choices.

The solution is more personal responsibility.

 

[VonMeister]

"The OECD report mostly looks at data in the years leading up roughly to the time of Trump’s win in 2016"




Poor josh He's stupid.

 

[the janitor]

also this:

40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense

https://money.cnn.com/2018/05/22/pf/emergency-expenses-household-finances/index.html

and this

Most Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency

https://money.cnn.com/2018/01/18/pf/lack-of-savings-cover-unexpected-expense/index.html

How many of those people are making car payments, cell phone bill payments, have maxed out credit cards, go out to dinner........?

Probably lots, which doesn't change the fact that a big part of our population are one hiccup away from serious problems.

Yes, and my contention is that most of the people who are in that situation got there by making poor choices.

The solution is more personal responsibility.

Totally agree, with the caveat that that would be part of the solution. I think we have some underlying dynamics that have skewed the system. For me anyway, the combo of:

- the financial meltdown, wherein the folks that mostly caused it get off with bonuses and loads of everyone else get fleeced
- rapidly mounting college costs
- rapidly mounting health care costs

is an untenable trend.

 

[Sharkbiscuit]

Totally agree, with the caveat that that would be part of the solution. I think we have some underlying dynamics that have skewed the system. For me anyway, the combo of:

- the financial meltdown, wherein the folks that mostly caused it get off with bonuses and loads of everyone else get fleeced
- rapidly mounting college costs
- rapidly mounting health care costs

is an untenable trend.

We should some of that student loan debt, chop it up, re-package it, get it insured, and rated, and then gamble $10 on the $1, and when we lose, blame the Fed.