I am not an economist by any stretch of the imagination! That is my superpower in starting In The Middle. If the great minds in U.S. macroeconomic environments can explain to me the answers to questions I have, then it can be explained in plain English to anyone who cares to hear.
First off, when I talk about the middle class I am not talking about middle income. I am talking about the middle class and the middle income as two separate things, which I will cover in more detail in Middle Class vs Middle Income.
Today the economic leaning is almost exclusively to the wealthy and the vehicles used for the wealthy to get more. This imbalance is not new or exclusive in any way in world history. Wealth gives power, power gives wealth. Those of means can and will care for themselves. I don’t need to worry on their behalf.
What I do worry about, is the majority of Americans1 financial wellbeing. Are the majority of Americans impoverished? Saying that impoverished Americans are not classified as poor does not change their situation. The hope would be to identify the impact from election changes that benefit the majority of people. My hope would be to see the objectively true situation and start defining a new era where the majority of Americans becoming a healthy Middle Class, which I currently think we are not. First step being, defining the Middle Class.
Once, a reasonable definition is created and becomes measurable, we as a country can start leading legislation that target expansion and stability for what we can now call a Middle Class. By giving people a view of the effect of executive orders and congressional bills on the Middle Class, we the people can start voting for targeted change that benefit the financial well-being of the majority.
By removing the term ‘middle class’ from the political rhetoric and replacing it with a quantifiable definition of the Middle Class we can start to measure cause and effect. We can know which policies strengthened or weakened the financial well-being of the majority of citizens.
Out Thought
- The use of Americans is shorthand for citizens of the United States of America. I think we all know what I’m saying. ↩︎