Interesting article by Elizabeth Warren on the struggling middle class. Some highlights:
"Today, one in five Americans is unemployed, underemployed, or just plain out of work. One in nine families can't make the minimum payment on their credit cards. One in eight mortgages is in default or foreclosure. One in eight Americans is on food stamps. More than 120,000 families are filing for bankruptcy every month. The economic crisis has wiped more than $5 trillion from pensions and savings, has left family balance sheets upside down, and threatens to put ten million homeowners out on the street.
The crisis facing the middle class started more than a generation ago. Even as productivity rose, the wages of the average fully-employed male have been flat since the 1970s. But core expenses kept going up. By the early 2000s, families were spending twice as much (adjusted for inflation) on mortgages than they did a generation ago -- for a house that was, on average, only ten percent bigger and 25 years older. They also had to pay twice as much to hang on to their health insurance.
To cope, millions of Americans put a second parent into the workforce. But higher housing and medical costs combined with new expenses for child care, the costs of a second car to get to work, and higher taxes combined to squeeze families even harder. Even with two incomes, they tightened their belts. Families today spend less than they did a generation ago on food, clothing, furniture, appliances, and other flexible purchases -- but it hasn't been enough to save them. Today's families have spent all their income, have spent all their savings, and have gone into debt to pay for college, to cover serious medical problems, and just to stay afloat a little while longer."
According to an Associated Press-MTV poll, more than one in four teenagers have been involved in "sexting" (sharing sexually explicit photos, videos, or chats by cellphone or online) in some form. (Full Story)
According to a new Thomson Reuters poll, 59.9% of Americans would like a public option as part of the health care reform legislation. Though they are bit more doubtful about the short-term effects of health care reform. 35% strongly disagree that the quality of health care will be better in 12 months. 52% strongly disagree the amount of money spent on health care will be less 12 months from now. 23% believe it will be easier for people to receive the care they need a year from now. (Full Story)
It would be interesting to see the results of how they feel the reform will be in the long-run (i.e., not just a year from now. It takes time for legislation to be implemented).
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