The slippery slide into the financial abyss started in the middle eighties. Company retirement plans morphed into matching fund 401(k's). A large percentage of workers failed to utilize or take advantage of a 401(k) account, electing instead to buy a boat, RTV, or a condo at the beach. The high school drop out rate increased. The local burger barn only needs so many minimum wage burger turners. The labor market switched from a "labor" market to a tech market. Companies were looking for employees with some college not high school drop outs. Tax incentives were given and are still being given to out sourcing jobs and manufacturing.
Politician refused to close "Tax" loop holes or stop providing entitlement incentives to large corporations resulting in some making billions, paying no taxes and getting millions back. Jobs were again lost.
America was faced with a dilemma, a large population not making enough money each week to provide housing, food and clothing for themselves and dependents. Social program were and continue to be strained. Reliance on food stamps, rental subsidies, utility subsides increased by leaps and bounds starting in 2001.
In 2008 when the economy tanked the population numbers that were living on the margins really increased, some estimate as much as ten fold. The number of children receiving school meal programs increased. Some school districts had/have ninety percent of elementary school students receiving free meals. Some are provided breakfast and lunch.
Middle class America is disappearing. Salaries for the middle class have remained flat since the middle eighties. The top earners have all fared very well. A middle class worker of today in all likelihood will not receive the monetary incentives his/her parents received for a weeks work. The worker of today will not be able to retire at an age any where near 65 years old. A worker entering the work force today will in all likelihood see SS and Medicare discontinued somewhere in the future.
I personally know workers who cannot retire at age 62-63 because they cannot afford health insurance coverage for themselves and spouse before Medicare starts at age 65. One who has had a couple of bouts with cancer advised he received insurance quotes of 1500-2000 per month for a family plan.
Society has winked/winked/grinned about drug addicts and other retiring in their twenties because they have a dependency problem our are traumatize by some phobia and unable to work. Some body has to provide funds for the dead beats to do nothing.
The next ten years will be testing ones for America. Do we degenerate into a third world country and let people sleep in boxes and starve or continue with some limited social programs to prevent such from happening. Do we stop electing idiots to represent the country or continue as usual electing those that create problems, not solve them?
Seniors watched as CD's stopped paying interest and their nest eggs dwindled because they were now tapping into the capital to maintain anywhere near a comfortable life style. The Federal Government printed money and loaned it to Banks at .25 percent interest rates insuring no returns on individual investments. Zero percent interest became the thing for large purchases.
People have started taking risks with their money in an attempt to stay even. The Stock Market is climbing but I would not hold my breath on that fickle industry making money for anyone except Wall Street when they are bailed out by the American Tax Payer.
