Why is it so difficult to make ends meeet? The average American?

Question

is too busy trying to make a living in a very expensive world that we live in. Little by litttle we are giving up our rights as American cititzens and we do not even realize it. What do you think?

Answer 1

nexus of capitalists and politicians.

Answer 2

I agree the US is turning into a socialist society. Taxes have become so outrageous due to the fact that no one is responsible for themselves anymore. We have to support all other nations and even all the people in the US who depend on federal public funding to live. It is becoming sad to be here, only to know that it will never get better.

I work at a hospital and see everyday why my wife and I have to work so hard. This is because 80% or more of the patients we treat are on Medicare, Medicaid, or are illegal and hospitals have no way of making them pay the bills they incur. At our L&D the first thing you see as soonas you step off the elevator is "Right from the start Medicare". What the hell thats why all these Mexicans and blacks are having so many kids when they can't even support themselves. Now I'm not racist but it is a fact that blacks and Mexicans make up the largest portion of illegitamate children and public sponsered patients.

Answer 3

First turn off that Television and create a routine that helps you progress and keep the house and care clean to be able to create an enviroment that helps your thought and creativty progress .Its commonsense that helps you make money and knowledge on how to approach a situation but never steal as a thing that is work for stays with you and you'v suffered for in the sense of hard work even through the hardest times never stop as in the end you can achieve and have what you worked for .Negativativty breeds nothing.

Answer 4

It is tough having to keep-up with the Joneses...

Try the following:

Use a dial-up service instead of DSL;
Choose basic cable over full movie packages and On Demand services;
Never eat out; always pack a sandwich and an apple for lunch;
Don't pay for your kids' sports and other extracurricular activities. Have them stay at home and helping with the chores.
Don't burn gas by going out at night.
Just use the car for shopping and going to work (and church, if you go to church);
Walk to the store more often;
Buy clothing from thrift stores;
Go to the library and check out books and DVDs, as opposed to buying or renting them;
Cancel your gym membership, and just jog around the neighborhood and do push-ups.

Do this for a few months, and you shall see how much you save.

However, your quality of life will be lowered; and your wife and kids may leave you!

Concerning your statement that having economic problems forces you to give up your rights as an American citizen, I do not see the correlation.

Answer 5

To the asker - and especially Jonny G

Where have you been at for the last 8 years. Both Congresses have assured themselves pay raises and costs of living wage every year during that time. I won't say that average Americans haven't got raises, if they are so lucky to, but certainly not to ease the cost of living on a yearly basis. And even raises cap out if one is so lucky to be still working for the same company after all that time. With the loss of a job also goes the rate of pay you were living at. A new job usually means starting at minimum again, therefore less income.

Insurance (health, life, house and auto) have all gone up, transportation costs have gone up, income taxes, and property taxes have gone up, gas prices, groceries, clothing, medical care/services and dental work, school tuition's, day to day expenses, and housing both rentals and purchasing, have all gone up.

Corporations have been making millions and even billions in profits for the past 6 years now. And the wealth doesn't trickle down to the pockets of the employees whose sweat is put into maintaining those companies services. Not even by yearly bonuses.

Most retail companies have learned that they can get assistance funds to train employees on the job. $3,000.00 per employee. As the employee gets ever so closer to working 1 year on the job, and a weeks paid vacation/holiday pay. The company does a turn-over of employees firing those and, bringing in fresh new ones - to which the employers are paid the training funds again. In the mean time the previous employees have lost their jobs, do not get their vacation/holiday - let alone the weeks worth of wages for them, as well as the wages, and raises earned during that time. And the companies keep it all with the exception to their employees last paycheck.

Jobs are being stripped down to part-time so that employers don't have to pay out for employees benefits like they once use to. So the average American must find and take on additional part-time work. Even then their primary employer could and have had issues with their employee working for other businesses outside of them.

Jobs are outsourced to foreign countries. Given to illegals who and I quote Bush "Are only taking the jobs that Americans don't want." I ask what average American doesn't want a family wage job that are going to illegal workers? And even so a study was done on how much a single person, family man w/wife, and family man w/wife and children needs to earn hourly to support them all. $13.00 for the single person. $20.00 or more for the man and wife, and $30.00 plus for the man, wife and children. How many jobs out there pay those kind of wages for every average American to have and hold on to?

So it isn't because they are always living beyond their means. Not even close.

Answer 6

Probably because so many want everything and they want it now. The house, the cars, the clothes, the 'toys', you name it. Credit cards are an easy and convenient way to be able to buy all this and credit is easy to get. Instant gratification. Before you know it, you are in debt up past your eyeballs. Who really needs al this stuff anyway? Does it really make anyone any happier? Not when those bills start coming in and guess who's gonna have to pay for it

Answer 7

Basically because when someone is paid little, they make the most of each unit of currency. As the pay goes up, so does the spending as does the standard of living.

Eg: Someone gets paid $350 a week and manages quite well, then gets a pay rise to $600 a week and spends much more than they were used to, and ends up with trouble.

Answer 8

Hmmmm.... I would say a loss of jobs in the private sector that are high-paying, a turn in the economy and higher taxes. Inflation, that sort of thing. Wages must keep up with the cost of living. There needs to be some sort of government intervention.

Answer 9

I have not lost any of my rights. I make ends meet by not living above what my income is, so I can pay my bills. I still save money regulary, straight to savings from my employer. I am proud to be a American. The reason you may not be making ends meet is that you spend more on what you want, than what you need.

Answer 10

Because today's America has no concept of what poverty really means.

If you are poor that does not mean you go out and buy a car, have tvs, play stations, dvds, new $100 shoes, cable television, cell phones, etc...

Answer 11

The average person outside of America has even more difficulty to make ends meet, as they don't make as much.
On the other hand, they're not driven to spend money they don't have so at least they're not in debt on 10 credit cards.