Middle class is a very arbitrary term. But if you expect it to be defined by something close to median income as the starting point, then that’s setting the bar very low. The lifestyle of a household making gross 250k and 100k isn’t drastically different. The big differences would be that the higher income household will have a little more options for children, daycare, education, retirement, or a couple more vacations per year. The lower income family would be doing any of those tasks at the expense of another. And even the 250k household will not effectively be able to check all the boxes off. One is going to be much more comfortable, but they will likely be working comparable hours to do it. Nothing about that screams rich. Instead of saying that people making that much aren’t middle class, we should steer the focus to how low the median income is.

Assuming your numbers are correct, if going from 155k to 250k moves you from top 20% to top 8%, that really just shows off how income is heavily skewed towards that top 0.001% more than anything since the slope beyond 1% is nearly a straight line up. I’ve more than doubled my income over the last 10 years and am making over $150k now, but I live the same life I have 10 years ago with a little more breathing room and realization I can actually retire. To me, it’s less about what I gained making more money. It’s about how little I had when I started around $40k. I have friends who make about half of my salary but arguably have a more lavish lifestyle and own nicer things. They sacrifice retirement for that choice. I still sacrifice living in a home at my income because I’m choosing saving for retirement over raising a family. My coworkers who make more than me have families and a house and their math doesn’t have a comfortable retirement on the table. It’s just that expensive.

All this middle class labelling serves is to drive this artificial resentment towards people of similar financial working class against relatively small margins. The couple in the article listed out very simple goals for what their housing costs should be and have struggles to stay in that budget. It speaks volumes to the housing issue we have today but also the expectations for what housing is. It’s going to be difficult to visualize a world where everyone can get that picturesque house with property and a coupe cars without some serious growth in development. But the only way to do that is through making terrible choices in city planning.

Housing should be affordable, but the idea that every family can own a big house just feels like a carrot on a stick that isn’t attainable within today’s parameters.

Data aside, the GOP has been uniting over the RNC and joining hands for their support of the candidate while the Democrats are imploding and casting doubt on themselves left and right. Will be curious to see how things shift in terms of polling. But at the end of the day, we have two very different candidates with different values. Would not surprise me to see a shift like we did in France and UK where last minute coalitions tip the scales.

It’s easy to complain now about disliking one candidate over another, but when left with the final decision at the end of the day, things change.

The supporters aren’t going anywhere though, even if the bullet hit. And JD Vance has essentially inherited the MAGA base now such that the movement doesn’t die with Trump anymore. Pence was never going to really do that when he was VP. But Vance could carry the torch as running mate and gave the party a more clear view of what succession looks like.

Jack Johnson and John Jackson*

Ramen is anime lamian. Chinese pulled noodles.

If I say no, Tom Cruise runs over me while I’m on the ground?

Nobody turns left like Yanet Garcia.

If you claim to be a porn addict but have never been tempted by or succumbed to spending money on porn, are you really an addict?

Regardless of how the debate goes, Trump supporters will already defend his performance and conservative media will talk about how Trump dominated and humiliated Biden.

Tbf, Biden supporters will probably do something similar.

We are in an awkward position where the opponents are so polarized that debates and discourse does very little to sway the bases. And the so called undecided votes have such eclectic criteria that it makes it difficult to pin down what they really want.