Things I tripped over on my way to the internet

hilker:

the article brings up three main points:

• Problem 1: Men’s earnings
• Problem 2 and Good Development 1: Women’s increased presence in the paid labor market
• Problem 3: Faster price growth for some important stuff

not being an economist, these all make sense. but from a social perspective, i think the biggest cause is that we’ve learned to live beyond our means, or failed to act our wage. it’s not so much the cost of goods that plays such a big role (though that’s an increasingly important factor as basic goods grow scarce), but the lifestyle which we’ve grown accustomed to. i understand that it’s harder in more metropolitan areas, but still, i think that our consumption-and entertainment-driven lifestyles play a huge role in how far our paychecks go.

given, the federal government & the fed have done a masterful job of manipulating the economy into a black hole, but i can’t blame them for my hunger when i won’t give up my cable tv. 

Um, hardly “impossible”. I know plenty of people that are doing it right now. I think hilker’s exactly right about what makes it harder but it’s not impossible.