My last post in this space demonstrated that the Middle Class in America has gotten larger, not smaller, over time.
I made the point that more and more people are making more and more money even as we keep the dollar values locked into 2008 values:
In 1967 [earliest data available] 83.7% of the families in America made less than $75,000 in constant 2008 dollars.
That percentage in 2008? 59.7%.
In other words, 16.3% of Americans were making $75k or more in 1967. In 2008, better than 4 in 10, or 40% of Americans were making that same money.
And the mean income in 2008? $79,634.00 compared to $49.606.00 in 1967. Not only has the median income gone up, but the % of people making it has gone up as well.
But how does it FEEL today vs. yesterday? Are we able to enjoy a standard of living that is significantly better now than it was then?
Well, I think so: