That last sentence is odd. What do you mean should be going to taxes? Sounds like you define wealthy by what taxes they pay. I know the billionaires have lots of loopholes to pay a lower percent, is using those loopholes your deciding factor?
Well my question was really about what “should” means to you. I have 2 kids, so my effective tax rate is like 25% or something. If I understand things right, the billionaires work things so they have very little taxable income, making thier 35% more like 1% of their actual income. So are you saying if a millionaire still pays thier taxes based on actual income, not using the method that billionaires use to lower their taxable income, then they are paying the taxes that they should pay?
I worry that she actually is “middle class” and the wealth disparity has moved to the point that those of us who cannot spend $150 on pet insurance or drop $750,000+ on a house or $100,000 on a truck are effectively “poor”, at least as far as the market is concerned.
Erm, not arguing that this lady is middle class, but dog insurance cost is not remotely relevant to that lol. I pay that for my dog and make less than 6 figures. My dog is just really important to me, and our last dog cost us thousands and thousands of dollars on vet bills. I’m not going to be blindsided dropping $5k in a day on vet bills again. Our dog has insurance because it seems like the financially responsible thing to do, especially when your dog is extremely active and engaging in sports that it may be injured doing.
I make less than 100k a year and my dogs insurance costs about that much. I didn’t have insurance for him before because he was young and healthy but then he tore his ACL and the surgery set me back 6.5K. That wasn’t exactly a drop in the bucket for me, at the time I had less than half of that in savings, and had to max out my credit card. So now yeah it sucks having to pay that much but if he does get a bad injury or illness - obviously I really hope that doesn’t happen and I have him for many more years to come - as he grows older, it will cost me way less as a lump sum.
$150 a month for her dog’s health insurance…
And she’s calling herself “middle class” like she lives in the burbs…
The wealthy always think of themselves as “middle class” because they know people wealthier.
Just because billionaires exist doesn’t mean millionaires who take annual child free vacations are suddenly “middle class”.
They just don’t want to actually admit they’re wealthy and wasting a shit ton of money that should be going to taxes.
What if how she lives is the way middle class should be? Like, we want to create a system where most people live this way (or have the option to).
That last sentence is odd. What do you mean should be going to taxes? Sounds like you define wealthy by what taxes they pay. I know the billionaires have lots of loopholes to pay a lower percent, is using those loopholes your deciding factor?
You’re talking “should” legally…
I’m talking “should” ethically, but really, they “should” have never made that wealth to begin with.
Well my question was really about what “should” means to you. I have 2 kids, so my effective tax rate is like 25% or something. If I understand things right, the billionaires work things so they have very little taxable income, making thier 35% more like 1% of their actual income. So are you saying if a millionaire still pays thier taxes based on actual income, not using the method that billionaires use to lower their taxable income, then they are paying the taxes that they should pay?
I worry that she actually is “middle class” and the wealth disparity has moved to the point that those of us who cannot spend $150 on pet insurance or drop $750,000+ on a house or $100,000 on a truck are effectively “poor”, at least as far as the market is concerned.
I mean, it should be median income/wealth, then a standard deviation either way.
But capitalism doesn’t care about people, it cares about money. That’s the only way the “middle class” can be defined differently.
Don’t let capitalism define words.
Erm, not arguing that this lady is middle class, but dog insurance cost is not remotely relevant to that lol. I pay that for my dog and make less than 6 figures. My dog is just really important to me, and our last dog cost us thousands and thousands of dollars on vet bills. I’m not going to be blindsided dropping $5k in a day on vet bills again. Our dog has insurance because it seems like the financially responsible thing to do, especially when your dog is extremely active and engaging in sports that it may be injured doing.
I make less than 100k a year and my dogs insurance costs about that much. I didn’t have insurance for him before because he was young and healthy but then he tore his ACL and the surgery set me back 6.5K. That wasn’t exactly a drop in the bucket for me, at the time I had less than half of that in savings, and had to max out my credit card. So now yeah it sucks having to pay that much but if he does get a bad injury or illness - obviously I really hope that doesn’t happen and I have him for many more years to come - as he grows older, it will cost me way less as a lump sum.
Depends on your measure of middle, I bet median would be pretty low but average is still probably way higher than most people.
Wealth gap has never been worse
I can’t afford $150 for my own health insurance
Yep, people keep replying like it’s a choice to pay it or not…
For most Americans, that shit ain’t a choice, they just can’t.