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#1971465 - 10/23/14 05:01 PM
The Truth
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10K Club
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 10,124
Way, way south.
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Giddy up.
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#1971469 - 10/23/14 05:05 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 38
The Sovereign State Of Oklahom...
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Well now I'm depressed again.....
Somebody get some of the candy from the Orny thread to cheer me up!
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Run like the wind, but never forget gravity.
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#1971485 - 10/23/14 05:46 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Diamond Poster
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,700
The Country
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I can't click on the list due to system settings. What is the general point?
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A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him. -David Brinkley
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#1971492 - 10/23/14 06:00 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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100 Club
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 116
Texas
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I read it. The point is we been robbed.
"7 Things the Middle Class Can’t Afford Anymore"
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"The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." --George Orwell
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#1971496 - 10/23/14 06:03 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Diamond Poster
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,700
The Country
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Thanks noelekal
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A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him. -David Brinkley
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#1971503 - 10/23/14 06:07 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 50
Kansas
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All of these are true of my family.
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#1971509 - 10/23/14 06:14 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Member
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 58
Mid West
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Vacation, I do not need no stinking vacation. At least that is what the bank keeps telling us. Strangely enough all the senior managers go on vacation several times a year whether they need it or not.
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#1971516 - 10/23/14 06:29 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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10K Club
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 19,858
Pulling people out of the ditc...
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just because i can afford a $32,000 car doesn't mean i need to spend that...and with the miles i put on, my trade in value is close to $0...have yet to spend more than $24,000 on a new car...and $8,000 difference, much more affordable.
we take vacations, but save for them. money gets set aside for it and is not touched for any reason other than vacation. we set a goal and go from there.
i rarely go out to lunch any more, instead bringing my lunch daily. at about $8-12 per day I was spending, that is some hefty annual savings of around $2,000-$2200. Certainly goes a long way to a vacation.
if i travel for work using my personal car, mileage reimbursement goes into either a savings account or the vacation kitty.
we want to buy something "big", we save for it.
and yet, people spend thousands each year on the newest cell phone and plan, every cable channel known to mankind (can you really watch 300+ channels at once?), top of the line name brand clothes, and on and on...
it is about priorities...and what you choose to spend your money on.
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#1971520 - 10/23/14 06:37 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Power Poster
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 5,912
Outside A Garage
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Actually, most millionaires drive used cars.
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#1971522 - 10/23/14 06:41 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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10K Club
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 10,124
Way, way south.
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I think the main crux of the article is that the current middle class cannot as easily afford the things that middle class of prior generations could afford.
Always good to save and spend only as much you can actually afford as you state Hap, but the ability to "afford" as much as prior generations seems to have been reduced by a significant degree.
I also don't buy the low inflation rates that the govt states on a regular basis. A gallon of gas $3-$4 usually, and a gallon of milk between $3.50 and $5 (depending on brand), bear me out.
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#1971528 - 10/23/14 06:50 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Power Poster
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 4,796
You are here
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I think the main crux of the article is that the current middle class cannot as easily afford the things that middle class of prior generations could afford.
Always good to save and spend only as much you can actually afford as you state Hap, but the ability to "afford" as much as prior generations seems to have been reduced by a significant degree.
I also don't buy the low inflation rates that the govt states on a regular basis. A gallon of gas $3-$4 usually, and a gallon of milk between $3.50 and $5 (depending on brand), bear me out. Could be a real site or just some nut job http://www.shadowstats.com/alternate_data/inflation-charts
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#1971530 - 10/23/14 06:49 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Gold Star
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 264
one state over
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I can afford anything I want (within reason) as long as I budget for it and plan accordingly. I think that is one thing that is missing from the current middle class, the ability to budget and plan. (Pretty much what Happy said)
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"Strip the Flesh, Salt the Wound" - Krieg
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#1971548 - 10/23/14 07:07 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Power Poster
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 5,912
Outside A Garage
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This
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#1971550 - 10/23/14 07:10 PM
Re: The Truth
Blade Scrapper
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10K Club
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 13,994
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if there are blank checks in my checkbook then I have money to spend
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#1971552 - 10/23/14 07:21 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Power Poster
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 5,912
Outside A Garage
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In today's world, it's "If I can still read the writing on my credit card, I can afford it".
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#1971553 - 10/23/14 07:21 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Platinum Poster
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 960
Illinois
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And I agree with Happy, DoS and Blade. My parents were very frugal, but we had a vacation every year. But pennies were pinched year round to make it happen. Nothing was bought until the money was saved for it.
I'm middle class, but I have vacations, retirement savings, etc. Even the car I drive was bought new, though that was seven years ago.
You just have to be careful that you don't fritter way your money on little daily expenditures that aren't necessary.
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#1971555 - 10/23/14 07:23 PM
Re: The Truth
MyBrainHurts
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10K Club
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 13,994
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three venti lattes per day are necessary!
so is the 70" HDTV
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#1971556 - 10/23/14 07:23 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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10K Club
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 19,858
Pulling people out of the ditc...
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I think the main crux of the article is that the current middle class cannot as easily afford the things that middle class of prior generations could afford.
but look at what the middle class used to have compared to what they want now. We had 1 TV in our house, we watched whatever dad/mom wanted. we had 1 new car (Mom) and 1 used car (Dad). When we needed a new car, it went to Mom and dad got the old one. We never had cable growing up. we had one phone and one phone line, in the den. With 7 kids, imagine trying to talk to your boyfriend/girlfriend. We lived in only 2 houses when we were growing up, the "starter" house my parents owned for 5 years, then the "newer" house that we lived in for hte next 12 years (until we moved to La.). I know people that upgrade their homes every 2-4 years. I konw people who buy new cars every 1-2 years. I konw people with 2 land and multiple cells. We have lost focus of what we "need" versus what we "want." trying to compare today versus our parents middle class generation is impossible. my grandfather never made more than $14k a year while working (he retired in 1983), yet managed to put 8 kids through private school and college, with no loans.
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#1971578 - 10/23/14 07:45 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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10K Club
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 13,965
TN
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Ditto Happy's comments. Lived in a tiny house growing up (2 parents - 3 kids) and we made do - and we only had one bathroom. One bathroom! Can you imagine? I watch shows like 'House Hunters' where the young couple has to have a minimum of two bathrooms, 2,000+ square feet, granite countertops, stainless appliances, etc. all for $100,000. Please! We have definitely blurred the lines between wants and needs.
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#1971581 - 10/23/14 07:48 PM
Re: The Truth
Blade Scrapper
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Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 38
The Sovereign State Of Oklahom...
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Actually, most millionaires drive used cars. Technically, everyone drives used cars. But i hear that some people get to buy new cars.... :sigh:
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#1971621 - 10/23/14 08:31 PM
Re: The Truth
MB Guy
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Diamond Poster
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,700
The Country
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Just comparing the cars of then and the cars of now. All the extra saftey equipment, computers, screens etc.... there is a reason they cost more now a days. I like being able to drive 80 mph without feeling like my car is going to fall apart
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A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him. -David Brinkley
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#1971624 - 10/23/14 08:32 PM
Re: The Truth
RockChucker, CAMS
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10K Club
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 13,994
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avoid a SmartCar then
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#1971627 - 10/23/14 08:39 PM
Re: The Truth
RockChucker, CAMS
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10K Club
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 19,858
Pulling people out of the ditc...
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All the extra saftey equipment, computers, screens etc.... i would make a case that this is a distraction to drivers, not safety equipment... I'd take any of the muscle cars of the mid-60s to mid-70s over anything made today...big, strong, safe cars... i had a 72 cougar that exceeded 140 MPH on more than one occassion. wouldn't try that in either of my Honda's today - if they could even get that fast.
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#1971632 - 10/23/14 08:43 PM
Re: The Truth
HappyGilmore
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Power Poster
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 4,132
Somewhere in the middle
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All the extra saftey equipment, computers, screens etc.... i would make a case that this is a distraction to drivers, not safety equipment... I'd take any of the muscle cars of the mid-60s to mid-70s over anything made today...big, strong, safe cars... i had a 72 cougar that exceeded 140 MPH on more than one occassion. wouldn't try that in either of my Honda's today - if they could even get that fast. Yeap, nothing like the drum brakes and gut busting lap belt to protect me. While your CRV may not get you to 140, my odyssey will, as well would my old 66 ford, but I would rather be doing it in my Honda. One,I can't tell i am going that fast in my Honda, but the 66 ford, I would have to yell to talk to someone else in her.
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