Living in Poverty Today is Almost as Good as Being Middle Class was in 1960. True or False?

Question

Many more benefits and much help goes to those that we say are "in poverty" today.

Think about how hard an average family's life was in 1960. People at the poverty cut-off today aren't much worse off than an average American was in 1960. Right?

What clothes do poor kids wear to school today? What did your relatives wear in 1960? How well did the car work? Medical care for a poor person is light-years better than it was in 1960. Example: There were no heart bypass operations.

I have adult handicapped relatives who are so much better off than what they would have been decades ago.

Answer 1

All valid points. Plus people at the poverty line today have amenities that are all wants, and not needs. For example, cable TV, Internet, cell phones, etc. All these are luxury items. They are not needs.

Answer 2

Poverty is a subjective term. I think that a person living in 1960 with the luxuries possessed by today's poor would be quite happy. In that respect, your statement is true.

Yet, poverty only has meaning when compared with someone else's standard of living. I think that in 1960, there was more of a sense of personal accountability. People realized that in most cases, if they had accomplished less than others, it was their own failing. Today, I believe that people are much more likely to blame their failures on others. They are much more likely to expect a hand-out to achieve their wants.

So in that sense, I think that people living in poverty today are much worse off than the middle class of 1960. They are miserable and are less motivated to work themselves into better situations.

Answer 3

Real Wages have been declining since 1968. There are more poor as a percentage of the population than there were in 1968. Poverty alleviation was much stronger then.

Being Middle Class today is enjoying less amenities than being poor in the 60's. Unless you were black...

Let's be truthful, the US is still a very difficult place to live in if you are not a white male young to middle aged....

Vanzetti said he was lining "under" America, not in it.
There are very many people still living "under" America.

Answer 4

Overconsumption of material things does not show an improvement in life.

Respect of the American freedoms, the constitution, and the bill of rights have been taken to a new low. Our prisons are now growing in size. Household debt is growing.

For a poor American, it is more difficult to just get by and people are working longer hours just to keep up.

Having more cheap junk from China does not equal a better life.

Answer 5

I disagree! I was raised middle class, and in the sixties, things were far better for the middle class, than for the poor now! Real wages have not even come close to keeping up with inflation, and the dollar went way farther back then. My father made around $30,000 (in 1960 dollars), back in the early sixties, and I have only broken the $30,000 mark (in 2004 dollars) once in my life. That was 3 years ago. Back then, it was easy for a one income household to live comfortably on $30,000. Now, it takes two incomes to live a comfortable life, unless you are making AT LEAST $45,000.
So no, I do not agree with your question at all! *sm*

Answer 6

I've seen a lot of mothers shopping at a thrift store for their childrens' clothes.

My relatives wore nice clothes, their money went further back then.

Milk wasn't $4 a gallon.

Those cars were built to last. My mom had a Mustang. Beauty.

Is light years better?

Medical care is better? Yes, the quality is better, if you can afford it.

Answer 7

Yeah, unless you were black, or hispanic, or jewish, or native american, or asian, or (insert ethnic minority).

If only we could go back to the good ole days when the government only took care of white people. Are you cracked? The reason things were so "great" back then is cause nobody talked about it. It drives me crazy when people talk about how great it was in the 50s and 60s. It was, if you were a white young to middle aged male.

Answer 8

I'd say that all depends on one's definition of "poverty". What dollar range is the highest mark for "poverty"?

I know people in the middle class who would go bankrupt if they needed an operation. Just because medical care has become so advanced does not mean it has become affordable. Especially in regards to these HMO's that punish you financially if you need to go out of their network for certain medical issues.

Answer 9

In some cases much better than the middle class of the 60's.

Answer 10

I wonder how many people in "poverty" and have no isurance have the following:

cable, internet, cell phones, rims, stereo systems, etc, etc.

Just because someone is living in "poverty", doesnt mean they dont have luxuries. its all about how they choose to spend their money (or shoudl I say my money)