Why do so many americans live paycheck to paycheck despite high salaries and resonable cost of living?

[Will be deleted]

Some seems to say that over half americans, maybe up to 60-70% live paycheck to paycheck including many with salaries above $100k.

Yet even including things like cars, healthcare and student debt americans probably come ahead people of other countries due to higher wages and lower taxes and some things like houses even seems cheaper in USA than peer countries.

It do seems to me that americans live more extravegant than people in peer countries but is that the reason for financial struggle?

[permanent name]

Messaggio originale di Tito Shivan:

Messaggio originale di ZZZZZ:

from my experience most americans would rather spend 50% of their salary on maintaining a car than ride a bike for 15miles

It's hard to ride a bike on a country mostly built for cars from the ground up.

Has to be. Shipping across its own land is one of the main economic advantages it can leverage.

[Tito Shivan]

Messaggio originale di Dutchgamer1982:

kids are a moral obligation.. which is why I propose negative child support
(tax the heck out of people without kids...)
+make pensions/401k or whatever 100% taxed if no kids.. 75% taxed if only 1 kid 25% taxed if 2.. and 0% taxed if 3 or more. or something like that.

TLDR: You want poor people to have kids they won't be able to afford to later grow up as cheap and abundant labor.

That rethoric sounds familiar.

[Apollo702]

Oh, I left out another one;

The credit card industry labels folks like me a deadbeat. I carry NO balances. so all they get are those small transaction fees but NONE of those 20+% interest payments from me.

No sir!

[Dutchgamer1982]

Messaggio originale di Anoi Hidalgo:

Messaggio originale di Dutchgamer1982:

and goverments should tax the heck out of parasites like that so badly you don't know how fast you need to start breeding.

no Ukraine has enough money. Taxes are just theft anyway because the government has a monopoly on violence

ukraine is a third world country poorer and more corrupt than all but like 2 in africa.. it is like on of the 30 most poor (gdp/capita, average income) and corrupt (corruption index) nations in the world even BEFORE this war..

there is a reason why I voted NO on the association treaty with ukraine and the eu (which my goverment ignored as always..)
and also why I strongly opposed military aid to ukraine and did NOT want a trade boycot between my natiopn and russia (which they also did despite it being madness to our nations economy)
and why I very much NOT want ukraine in nato or the EU

we already are drained dry by south european nations 1/3d our wealth.. and east european anations 1/7th..
I do not want a nation being added that has a populationsize thats 1/3d of all the current eu states population that is 1/70th our wealth.. and that has recently been shot to pieces
IMAGINE how much that would leach from our nation wealth to get that mess even remotely fixed.

I sympathise with the ukrainian people.. but in my nations interest.. we should never get involved.. we should stop being involved... and stay not being involved.

ukraine is also abused by some usa agenda.. that is not in ukrainian people nor in most of europeas people's intererest..

eu will be much poorer as it is forced to import american gas at a higher price than russian gas was.. it also lost all the money from exports to russia.. and our industry has died.. as our products became to expensive to manufacture at this kind of energy prices..

ukraine.. will be shot to pieces.. and many be dead (but I guess feeling a hero in a war and having billions of aid to pocket some from is attractive to some)

usa.. has all of the sudden WAY more money from weaponorders from eu AND can sell it's gasexports for a heck of a lot more...
AND it can weaken russia..
they complain this war is european.. it is not it is usa's war
they complain usa is paying for it.. it is not.. usa is profiting off it


for over 300 years the usa's policy always has been "lets make sure that the resources of russia and the industry of europe NEVER join in the same team"
this is just part of the continuation of that agenda.
europe should stop buying in that usa ploy and find a way to DO get them in the same team.. for once they are WE will rule again not usa.
sure putin is bad.. but who did push nato expantion who did push shock therapy..
usa did.
putin not always behaved this hostile.. and russia was on it's way to democratise and at a point even would have joined the eu/nato.
it is usa that purposely spoiled that process. of which we see the conclusion now.

[Will be deleted]

Do americans know they are in general richer than people in other countries?

I guess that still don’t stop them from spending even more money, money they don’t have.

[Ulfrinn]

Messaggio originale di Will be deleted:

Do americans know they are in general richer than people in other countries?

I guess that still don’t stop them from spending even more money, money they don’t have.

Okay... and?

[Dom]

Messaggio originale di Will be deleted:

Do americans know they are in general richer than people in other countries?

I guess that still don’t stop them from spending even more money, money they don’t have.

It doesn't matter if they have higher income if they pay twice as much for things like healthcare as other developed countries in the world per capita.

All of those higher out-of-pocket costs in the US tend to neutralize the effects of higher salary.

[Will be deleted]

Messaggio originale di Dom:

Messaggio originale di Will be deleted:

Do americans know they are in general richer than people in other countries?

I guess that still don’t stop them from spending even more money, money they don’t have.

It doesn't matter if they have higher income if they pay twice as much for things like healthcare as other developed countries in the world per capita.

All of those higher out-of-pocket costs in the US tend to neutralize the effects of higher salary.

Depend on what salary you have, at some point USA salaries come ahead, on low incomes it is pretty bad however.

$100k salary in USA give like $70k after tax vs like $50k in my country, sure there are some retirement given.

[the vampire of time and memory]

Messaggio originale di Will be deleted:

Messaggio originale di Dom:

It doesn't matter if they have higher income if they pay twice as much for things like healthcare as other developed countries in the world per capita.

All of those higher out-of-pocket costs in the US tend to neutralize the effects of higher salary.

Depend on what salary you have, at some point USA salaries come ahead, on low incomes it is pretty bad however.

$100k salary in USA give like $70k after tax vs like $50k in my country, sure there are some retirement given.

unless you're a millionaire there's no way you're coming ahead considering healthcare, education and the insane tipping culture costs

[Dutchgamer1982]

Messaggio originale di Anoi Hidalgo:

Messaggio originale di Dutchgamer1982:

ukraine is a third world country poorer and more corrupt than all but like 2 in africa.. it is like on of the 30 most poor (gdp/capita, average income) and corrupt (corruption index) nations in the world even BEFORE this war..

there is a reason why I voted NO on the association treaty with ukraine and the eu (which my goverment ignored as always..)
and also why I strongly opposed military aid to ukraine and did NOT want a trade boycot between my natiopn and russia (which they also did despite it being madness to our nations economy)
and why I very much NOT want ukraine in nato or the EU

we already are drained dry by south european nations 1/3d our wealth.. and east european anations 1/7th..
I do not want a nation being added that has a populationsize thats 1/3d of all the current eu states population that is 1/70th our wealth.. and that has recently been shot to pieces
IMAGINE how much that would leach from our nation wealth to get that mess even remotely fixed.

I sympathise with the ukrainian people.. but in my nations interest.. we should never get involved.. we should stop being involved... and stay not being involved.

ukraine is also abused by some usa agenda.. that is not in ukrainian people nor in most of europeas people's intererest..

eu will be much poorer as it is forced to import american gas at a higher price than russian gas was.. it also lost all the money from exports to russia.. and our industry has died.. as our products became to expensive to manufacture at this kind of energy prices..

ukraine.. will be shot to pieces.. and many be dead (but I guess feeling a hero in a war and having billions of aid to pocket some from is attractive to some)

usa.. has all of the sudden WAY more money from weaponorders from eu AND can sell it's gasexports for a heck of a lot more...
AND it can weaken russia..
they complain this war is european.. it is not it is usa's war
they complain usa is paying for it.. it is not.. usa is profiting off it


for over 300 years the usa's policy always has been "lets make sure that the resources of russia and the industry of europe NEVER join in the same team"
this is just part of the continuation of that agenda.
europe should stop buying in that usa ploy and find a way to DO get them in the same team.. for once they are WE will rule again not usa.
sure putin is bad.. but who did push nato expantion who did push shock therapy..
usa did.
putin not always behaved this hostile.. and russia was on it's way to democratise and at a point even would have joined the eu/nato.
it is usa that purposely spoiled that process. of which we see the conclusion now.

okey dokey, so you want to to raise taxes aka send more money to Ukraine, for some reason

no.. I want my country, the netherlands.. to
A stop deliverting money, and goods to ukraine
B reinstate all normal trade with russia (lifting the trade boycot)
C repair OUR northstream pipeline, and investigate who has destroyed it (my bet is usa) and demand they pay up.
D leave the EU (turn it into an asociation treaty) so that we won't be dragged in the whole moneypit as I fully expect the other nations to still let ukraine in.
E stop ordering ANY weapons from usa.. while I will demand our militairy spending must be 2%.. it must be bought in Netherlands (if there is anybody capable to make it left) .. or in other european nations.. so no more american made guns, planes etc.. we must develop our own weapon industry
F I would order nukes to be developed and prepared for my nation.. as we can't be sure those of usa will shield us for much longer

that will do for now in regards to the whole ukraine war.. ofcourse more measures are needed in regards to other policy points.

so basicly yeah I do agree my nation must meet the 2% GDP nato norm.. but I don't want usa to keep profiting of any orders any longer.

ukraine.. can fend for itself. for all I care.
but I do want to stock up arms.. just in case putin does go insane and attacks baltics or other nato members.

if they however ever let ukraine join nato.. I would object my nation ever giving support. I not recognise ukraine ever joining nato and would make it clear we will defend any other nato nation.. but NOT ukraine.

[Will be deleted]

Messaggio originale di the vampire of time and memory:

Messaggio originale di Will be deleted:

Depend on what salary you have, at some point USA salaries come ahead, on low incomes it is pretty bad however.

$100k salary in USA give like $70k after tax vs like $50k in my country, sure there are some retirement given.

unless you're a millionaire there's no way you're coming ahead considering healthcare, education and the insane tipping culture costs

My american co-workers earn around $200k and that put them far ahead of people doing the same job in my country. So No you don’t need to be millionare, just highly paid.

[Poyzo]

A lot of people are not good at budgeting, they just spend, spend, spend!

[Ulfrinn]

Messaggio originale di the vampire of time and memory:

Messaggio originale di Will be deleted:

Depend on what salary you have, at some point USA salaries come ahead, on low incomes it is pretty bad however.

$100k salary in USA give like $70k after tax vs like $50k in my country, sure there are some retirement given.

unless you're a millionaire there's no way you're coming ahead considering healthcare, education and the insane tipping culture costs

Most jobs, especially those paying above minimum, will provide healthcare through the employer. If you're making decent money, you've already been through college. And they have more at the end of the month. When government takes money from you to fund your healthcare and college, they're not giving you back and equivalent value to what they taxed away from you. It's like they're taxing you for a Porsche, and delivering you a Kia. Where does the rest of that go? Well, it could be in YOUR pocket, but instead, it's in the pocket of those who wrote the legislation for such programs. And you're actually thanking them for it.

[miakisfan]

Messaggio originale di Will be deleted:

Some seems to say that over half americans, maybe up to 60-70% live paycheck to paycheck including many with salaries above $100k.

Yet even including things like cars, healthcare and student debt americans probably come ahead people of other countries due to higher wages and lower taxes and some things like houses even seems cheaper in USA than peer countries.

It do seems to me that americans live more extravegant than people in peer countries but is that the reason for financial struggle?

Joe Biden and the current Administration is the reason why. All you need to do is look at the policies and check the numbers. I know some people have a hard time comprehending such an easy answer but there it is.

Any other answer is people fooling themselves ... or making money off of those policies.

[Dutchgamer1982]

while usa has introduced this model more than any other nation...

the deeper problem = money as debt

money lended into excistance.. but not the interest on it.
means that the banks and 1 person eventually own everything all property all land all resources and everybody else just dies.

everytime debt is paid off money is destroyed
to print 100 dollar the goverment must loan 100 dollar + 10 dollar in debt
than it gives that 100 dollar to a bank.. who uses that 100 dollar to be alowed to write out 10000 dollar of interest bearing loans.. (it creates 10000 of digital currency on debet accounts)
-
if all debts in the world were paid off.. all currency be gone and there still be debts left to pay

the only way to push that doomsday scenario is to loan ever more.. and not at a constant rate no at a percentual rate
so loan 100, than 110 than 121 than 133.1 and so on.
that number will grow to insanity quite fast... this is why we have inflation..
and why we have economic crisisises.. economic crisisis are artificially created by banks.. when banks basicly increase their ownership % of the real economy.. growing closer to that 1 man owns everything.

so.. to push it even further away.. is to have the economy grow... yes the bank, the 1 man will own an ever larger percentage of all real property land, goods etc.. but if you can make the total amount of these goods available larger at the same rate.. the normal people will maintain the same standard of living..

this is why the economy needs to remain growing.. again not at a fixed rate.. but an incremental rate..
which is a problem.. when you live on a finite planet with finite land and space, with finite resource, to support a finite number of people who will have a finite amount of labout
it simply can't keep up..

so thats why the middleclass gets poorer... in absolute living standard..
sure for some part we can export our poor.. by driving another nation into debt aka poverty.. it is their people not yours that will have to hand in their slice of pie aka standard of living to enlarge the bankers slice.. but even that cannot be kept up forever...

in the end.. this system is just not sustainable and we must change what money is.

but while we are under this system debt must grow ever larger..
we can only control who carries that debt..
some manage to have foreigners or foreign nations carry their debt
some have high national debt..
some have high morgage debt
some have high corporate debt
some have high student debt
some have high private spending debt

but fact is this system would collapse in every goverment would balance the budget and pay of the national debt and if every employee would pay of their debt and start living below their means and start saving..

thus many nations PUNISH you for doing so.. saving and not making debts is NOT the behavior they want to see in their people..

=======================
yes this system must be changed.,.. but until it is.. it only will get worse..
and it is totally possible for 1 person or 1 nation to get out of debt and save up..
but know that globally debt will only ever increase all you do is push the live grenade to somebody else..