1. At the Bottom: Of the Half-Billion Poorest Adults in the World, One out of Ten is an American
2. At the Top: The Richest 1/10 of American Adults Have Averaged Over $1 Million Each in New Wealth Since the Recession
3. In the Middle: The US is the Only Region Where the Middle-Class Does Not Own Its Equivalent Share of Wealth
4. In the Upper-Middle: For a Full 70% of Americans, Percentage Ownership of National Wealth is One of the Lowest in the World
5. The Big Picture: Only Kazakhstan, Libya, Russia, and Ukraine Have Worse Wealth Inequality than the United States
http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/10/19/new-2015-wealth-data-us-inequality-its-ugliest
So perhaps the author would propose that we take half of your income and give it to someone else... We can't have have's and have nots you know. The idea that in a Half-Bilion of the worlds poorest adults, one in ten is American is PURE BULL SHIT! Anywhere in this country, ANYWHERE, anyone, legal, illegal, homeless, etc... can access food, medical care and shelter. They can also access State and Federal assistance as well as education. Global travel away from the ritzy resorts and chic eco-resorts might open the eyes of some of our citizens... But then they will believe whatever they want if it gets us more free _______________
Quote from: Ocklawaha on October 20, 2015, 09:16:33 PM
So perhaps the author would propose that we take half of your income and give it to someone else... We can't have have's and have nots you know. The idea that in a Half-Bilion of the worlds poorest adults, one in ten is American is PURE BULL SHIT! Anywhere in this country, ANYWHERE, anyone, legal, illegal, homeless, etc... can access food, medical care and shelter. They can also access State and Federal assistance as well as education. Global travel away from the ritzy resorts and chic eco-resorts might open the eyes of some of our citizens... But then they will believe whatever they want if it gets us more free _______________
You say it's bullshit - but can you provide evidence to refute the statistics mentioned in the article? I am not saying that those figures are correct - I don't know if they are - but I am certainly not going to contend they are incorrect just because I don't want to think they are.
Although 1 in 10 seems a bit unlikely, it's also worth noting that the USA is the third most populous country in the world.
Also - this information apparently comes to us from Credit Suisse. So it's not as if this is simply conjecture by a lefty website.
http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=C26E3824-E868-56E0-CCA04D4BB9B9ADD5 (http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=C26E3824-E868-56E0-CCA04D4BB9B9ADD5)
Quote from: stephendare on October 20, 2015, 09:36:35 PM
Quote from: Ocklawaha on October 20, 2015, 09:16:33 PM
So perhaps the author would propose that we take half of your income and give it to someone else... We can't have have's and have nots you know. The idea that in a Half-Bilion of the worlds poorest adults, one in ten is American is PURE BULL SHIT! Anywhere in this country, ANYWHERE, anyone, legal, illegal, homeless, etc... can access food, medical care and shelter. They can also access State and Federal assistance as well as education. Global travel away from the ritzy resorts and chic eco-resorts might open the eyes of some of our citizens... But then they will believe whatever they want if it gets us more free _______________
does that apply to the undocumented workers who are here Ock? Or do they not count?
Stephen - you do mean illegal aliens right? Of course they count - they count twice (not talking about votes LOL) they show up as "poor" because they have no real assets and they work off the books sending most what they earn back home, then they count when they receive government services which squeezes the taxpaying middle class. see?
Quote from: stephendare on October 21, 2015, 12:41:40 PM
Sentient where do you get your information, Ku Klux Klan brochures? You do realize that undocumented workers pay into our Social Security and taxes but cannot file returns or collect Social Security, right?
You always keep trying to slight people. Makes you look bad bro. Please explain how someone who is being paid off the books is actually having FICA withheld? I'll wait.... and wait.... and wait....
And for those who are illegal immigrants and ARE paying FICA, they are doing so only by using a fraudulent SSN and rightfully cannot claim any SSN benefits. So illegal entry and illegal use of SSN. Notwithstanding these facts, lunatic state governments still provide billions in services to the criminal entrants, siphoning these resources away from legitimate US citizens with need. A further crime against the citizenry perpetuated by the "government". You can't make this stuff up!
Quote from: stephendare on October 22, 2015, 08:29:12 AM
Except of course that you are making it up. What a bizarre post. On one hand you deny that undocumented workers are paying taxes for which they do not get reimbursed ( including all local sales and excise taxes, fees etc) then you acknowledge it but indicate that it doesn't count because : illegal., then you claim that there are billions of dollars that get spent on government services (which according to you they can't get) without a single example, before you finally finish up by saying you can't make this stuff up.
Brilliant.
And all this to deny that the us has some of the poorest adults in the world?
Also worth noting that illegal aliens need to eat, drink, wear clothing, etc. So at the very least, the contribute to the public purse via sales tax. And they help create jobs.
If you read the source material, one of the reasons so many Americans are considered part of the poorest in the world is the vast amount of debt they hold. If your liabilities exceed your assets, you literally have less than nothing.
51 Percent Of All American Workers Make Less Than 30,000 Dollars A Year
According to new numbers that were just released by the Social Security Administration, 51 percent of all workers in the United States make less than $30,000 a year.
https://www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/netcomp.cgi?year=2014
The following are some of the numbers that really stood out:
-38 percent of all American workers made less than $20,000 last year.
-51 percent of all American workers made less than $30,000 last year.
-62 percent of all American workers made less than $40,000 last year.
-71 percent of all American workers made less than $50,000 last year.
That first number is truly staggering. The federal poverty level for a family of five is $28,410, and yet almost 40 percent of all American workers do not even bring in $20,000 a year.
If you worked a full-time job at $10 an hour all year long with two weeks off, you would make approximately $20,000.
About a quarter of the country actually has a negative net worth right now.
What that means is that if you have no debt and you also have ten dollars in your pocket that gives you a greater net worth than about 25 percent of the entire country.
Quote from: finehoe on October 22, 2015, 08:51:16 AM
If you read the source material, one of the reasons so many Americans are considered part of the poorest in the world is the vast amount of debt they hold. If your liabilities exceed your assets, you literally have less than nothing.
Which is why the first item on the list is so misleading. I think when most people hear "poor" they think low income. You might make $100K per year but have an underwater home mortgage and this list calls you one of the "poorest adults in the world." Good clickbait, though.
Broad access to easy credit is a feature of our financial system that many Americans take for granted and demonize.
Quote from: NIMBY on October 22, 2015, 09:35:08 AM
Broad access to easy credit is a feature of our financial system that many Americans take for granted and demonize.
It's also worth considering that a ridiculous amount of money is spent annually by financial institutions to market credit to people and to try to get people to open credit cards, loans, etc. This is a business - and although the consumer may be partially at fault for taking on credit he or she cannot afford, the consumer shares that blame with the banks (who are far more culpable).
Quote from: NIMBY on October 22, 2015, 09:35:08 AM
Which is why the first item on the list is so misleading. I think when most people hear "poor" they think low income. You might make $100K per year but have an underwater home mortgage and this list calls you one of the "poorest adults in the world."
Well, it's a bank that published the report, so we shouldn't be too surprised that they view things through that prism.
Nonetheless, as long as they are using consistent criteria from country to country, the point is valid.
Quote from: finehoe on October 22, 2015, 09:48:20 AM
Nonetheless, as long as they are using consistent criteria from country to country, the point is valid.
The Credit Suisse report appears to be valid, the listicle isn't. The report was very careful to avoid the use of the word "poor" for the very reason the commondreams website used it (really, pasted from some other website). Calling someone poor implies low income, low net worth, and low consumption whereas the study focused on net worth (wealth).
Honestly, I really don't care about this stupid list, I just think it's insulting to the actual poor of the world.
Quote from: NIMBY on October 22, 2015, 11:58:37 AM
Calling someone poor implies low income, low net worth, and low consumption whereas the study focused on net worth (wealth).
What's an antonym for wealth? I think "poverty" springs to mind.
Quote from: stephendare on October 22, 2015, 04:44:24 PM
But I can't be broke! Ive still got checks left!
I prefer hearing it in 3rd person:
They can't be broke, they make $100k a year....