I’ve only been half-heartedly following this Occupy Wall Street stuff (I still don’t understand the point of it all?) but whenever I come across financial widgets I’m right on that $hit ;)
And this whole protest thing got the Wall Street Journal to come up with a crazy simple calculator that shows you what % you’re actually in among the country’s population. And I’ll give you a hint, you’re probably NOT in the top 1%, haha… unless you’re making $500,000+/year? (And if so, can we be besties??)
Now mind you, this has nothing to do with WEALTH or NET WORTH or anything like that – just income. Here’s a snippet from the WSJ on what this Wall Street’s stuff’s apparently about (in case you’re just as clueless as I am… though I can’t promise this will make it clearer for you):
According to the protesters’ unofficial website, “Occupy Wall Street” is a leaderless movement of people from many different backgrounds. “The one thing we all have in common is that we are the 99% that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1%,” the website says. A related site called We Are the 99% records stories from people around the country.
So I guess if any of you would like to share a story, go to that site above ;) I think I need to understand all this a bit more before I can go joining these leaderless ranks out there – I usually don’t do too well with extreme beliefs on one side or the other anyways. Maybe if the gov’t started telling everyone to stop saving and budgeting I’d stand up and say my peace then? I know THAT would piss me off pretty well! For now, though, I’ll just continue sitting on the sidelines unless one of you can convince me otherwise ;) And I’m pretty sure we’ve got some PRO Occupyers up in here too?
Either way, check out that calculator and tell us what % YOU’RE in! You literally just have to type in your total household income to get it – it’s pretty fancy ;) We’re in the 76% with our total income around $90,000. Down from 83% a few years ago (when the wifey and I were both working full-time). Your turn! There are no right or wrong answers here, it’s not a test :)
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PS: Thanks to MSN for passing this through my eyeballs…
PPS: So far THIS is the best article I’ve now read on O.W.S. Huge thanks to Chrysilla for point it out. Lots of pretty pictures and stats simply portrayed – exactly what I was needing :) (Though it still doesn’t convince me one way or the other on where I stand – just proof we have some big issues!)
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Base rate 34%… make it up to about 36% if I’ve gotten myself into enough overtime ;)
87%…does this now make me a whiny kid who is protesting, uh, what was it? Who has time to sit around all day and night to make a vague point about their own responsibility…boo hoo, suck it up, rub some dirt on it and drive on.
*irresponsibility
Just me – 63%
Me and the girlfriend – 82%
Very embarrassingly 94% (based on last years income figures and this year is likely to be similar). Embarrassing because this makes us appear even more silly being broke on this – thank goodness it is all in the past and a new regime has been etablished.
Wow! Ok, this just made me feel really, really grateful. I kind of figured my husband and I would wind up somewhere around 50%. I won’t know the exact figure until the end of the year, but so far it looks like we’ll end up somewhere between 67% and 70%. Not too bad for people who have only been in the work force for 5 years and change. ;-)
That said, I do think that the massive gap in wealth between the 1% and the 99% is indicative of a problem in our country. I just don’t think it’s something that can be pinned entirely on the greed of one group or the laziness of another. As with all things, the truth probably lies somewhere in between, with a whole host of other contributing factors.
We’re at 74%….feels good after 23 years of hard work:) Booya!
I put in President Obama’s income from last year (1.7 million) and he’s in the 99.5% – kind of ironic. The OWS group just seems whiny to me. But then again any group that has a group mentality of victimhood drives me insane – there are so many wonderful opportunities in this country – you just have to WORK for them.
Sorry to sound political/uncaring/grumpy, but I’m too busy WORKING to pay my bills, help with my kids college tuition and buy groceries….I’d be much more impressed if the group had a plan or a goal or a reason for their protest.
Back to WORK now……sheesh I do sound grumpy – maybe I need a day off?
we’re at 53%
which I guess is good since I don’t live in the USA and Mexico is way more poorer
I still don’t fully understand what the occupy whatever is for… is it just to complain about something?
Reminds me of a time where there were blockages with people asking the military to go away and leave us in peace (???) … back then you didn’t see any soldier on the streets as they were considered mostly safe so they didn’t have any reason to be complaining but still they were…
Now it seems like you can’t pass a day without seeing them, fully armed and ready to shoot but no one complains now. But that’s another story…
90-93% depending on hubby’s commissions. We are both fortunate with good jobs. I have told him in the past we were in the top 10% of US incomes, but he thought I was crazy!
It is shameful though that we have credit card debt (I inherited his 1 1/2 months ago when we got married.) But, we had a beautiful wedding and honeymoon, and have 2 houses we are maintaining. It’s a temporary situation, as my master plan is to have it paid off within 2 years.
Then we should be sitting pretty!
Just a foot note. I looked at the calculator again, and it says it is based on all tax-filing units. So these percentiles are only including everyone who made enough money to file a tax return. Think of all the people who don’t make enough to file a return, are on nontaxable social security, etc., and your percentile is even higher based on total population and not just tax return filing population!
76% over here! It’s funny that you posted this because last night I was reaching out to Twitter for an unbiased explanation of what’s going on. I still don’t quite understand what these people plan on accomplishing protesting such a broad issue, but more power to them for exercising their rights!
I’m like you, J…I feel like I need to understand this movement more before I start choosing sides…
We’re 70% with our joint income- woo-hoo! Kind of motivating, I feel like we should work a bit harder to get the student loans paid off. Hoping to improve that next year.
I saw that there’s a similar calculator that includes net worth instead of income. We’re 63% on that :( Time to hustle a bit.
This sums it up and shows the relationship to the tea party:
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/1011/An_Occupy_Wall_StreetTea_Party_Venn_diagram.html
I guess I was a little uncertain myself about all the protests until I watched this video clip: http://on.wsj.com/vbQ4CB
It doesn’t seem right that so small a percentage of people have such a high profit margin that isn’t put to use in a productive way… But I am still thinking through some of this. Does the video change the way you look at it? It is so hard to know what source of media to trust, everyone has an agenda.
90% <– Sooooooooooooooooo don't feel like it though!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
73% and will probably drop this year since my old lady lost her job and got one that pays less, but she actually loves this job, so I consider it a win. Nothing better than a happy wife!
93%, it’s based on gross income not net, which is kinda skewed in my POV. Since my investments are not making profit, the income and expense is net 0. So why should my income even be at that %? Seems like it’s inflated.
Wooo doggy! Look at all these sexy % numbers being added! Thanks for playing around — this is incredibly interesting to me :) Esp the videos/links y’all are finding too — thanks!
@Jenn – I used to love overtime :) So much more money for the same amt of work!
@Matt – Rub some dirt on it? haha… haven’t heard that one before. I know “brush the dirt off your shoulders” like a PIMP ;)
@Andy – Not too shabby my friend!
@Maria Nedeva – Oh wow, yeah – really good thing y’all are on the right track now! And a pretty good position to be in because there are plenty of others broke and in debt making 1/2 or even 1/3 of that money. So you’ve got the income-producing part down well :) That’s much harder than wiping out debt.
@Stephanie – Yup! Agreed. Way more convoluted than simple generalities. Congrats on being better than you thought w/ the income percentage :)
@Den – Haha, I like your grumpiness cuz I’m pretty sure you’re just saying out loud what a lot of others are thinking ;) I fall more into that category myself, but then try and back out until I can learn more about what’s going on. But then I don’t (cuz I don’t care that much), and I see them all on TV again and then go back to thinking negative thoughts again. I’ll tell you this much though – they sure do know how to market themselves! Could be handy if anyone’s looking for attention ;)
@mints – Oh man, that’s freaky. You’re talking about there in Mexico? I know when we have police w/ rifles in our subways certain times everyone gets scared. Just not natural for us to see here in the States.
@Nicole – Yeah girl! You guys are def. blessed, and it’s totally fine to have nice things/houses/etc if that’s where your priorities are – it’s your money! But glad to see you’ve got a game plan in the works w/ the debt too :) As you said, it’s only temporary. Oh, and you’re so right!! The % does NOT include non filers. Though it also means a lot of people who are cheating the system aren’t being counted too ;) But probably more poor than sneaky rich.
@Trinnie – Yeah, I will say that I find them super ballsy and super respectable for actually standing out there and causing a ruckus for what they believe in – even though we don’t know what that is. It would have to take a LOT for me to go and do that, so it must be super important to them (or at least a majority of them) to cause quite a scene. I can give them credit for that :)
@Elle – Oooooh really? A Net Worth calculator? If you find it again, or know the url, will you send it over? I think I remember doing one a few years back (on this blog, actually) but curious to see if it’s changed or it’s a new one.
@M – Hah! In picture form and everything, I like that :) And easy to understand too, thanks. Maybe they should all hold up signs w/ their part of the circle on it? :)
@SmartAssetTeam – Woahhhh that’s interesting because if I’m going on that video then I don’t have a problem at ALL with the 1%. I mean, they’re choosing to get their money in totally different ways than the other 99%, and it’s a LOT smarter. I would LOVE to get most of my income off of investments and return on capital!! That’s a dream if you’re brilliant enough to pull that off. You’re having your money work for you, rather than you work all the time for money. And once you get your money, you can do with it as you well please. It’s a totally different mentality than “working for money” as a main source of income. And I’m literally trying to do that myself! haha… build up products to earn income rather than work for other companies so that THEY get a profit. But that’s my personal thoughts on it :) That video actually gets me fired up! Haha…
@me – Balla! Haha…
@Brian – You got that right, brotha! Anyone who’s happy with their job is a WIN in my books :)
@LLF – Yeah, it’s not the most perfect calculator but it def. gives perspective which I think is the main point.
74% here… They really should have something for single or married income, completely skews the numbers.
84% and debt free (finally). :-)
34%….boo!
I am having trouble deciding what I feel about the “Occupy Wall Street” movement….I am like you, J, in that I have trouble with “extremes” of any belief system and I tend to fall somewhere in the middle of everything. On one hand, it seems SO unfair to me that large corporations are unregulated, can screw up the economy, get bailed out, and KEEP the bailout money and give themselves millions in bonuses while taxpayers swallow their mistakes. Meanwhile, banks give consumers crappy loans they know they can’t afford and make a profit off of them while they lose their house. That is unfair and disgustingly greedy.
On the other hand, even if corporations make billions of dollars, I don’t think that wealth should be re-distributed. And while many of the protestors are angry that corporations don’t have to pay taxes, it seems like tax breaks are the only thing keeping these corporations in this country…otherwise they will offshore a bunch of jobs to make a profit. It seems to me that corporations are like a necessary evil….they supply americans with jobs and keep business in the US..
argh sorry :) I am just thinking out loud here….please let me know if I am totally right or totally wrong with my reasoning, you guys!
btw…i just watched the video that SmartAssets posted and i agree with you J — I do not have a problem AT ALL with this part of whats being protested…if the 1% found a SMART way to make LOTS of money then god bless em!
I think that the Occupy folks are putting the cart before the horse, but that is not necessarily their fault. If the protesters started to get their acts together on changing one particular law, I think there would be a huge reaction and they’d gain a much larger following. I’m waiting for that to happen, but I honestly think the system is too messed up and the Occupy folks are not all Harvard economists–they are just reacting to their gut feeling: something is very, very wrong with the current system. It has gone too far to fix simply by focusing on changing one policy. It took years and many laws and mistakes to get where we are. So where does the common protester even start to unravel the tangled mess we have before us, esp. if they don’t entirely understand how the system works?? Someone needs to step up and explain it, and offer solutions on how to fix it before gathering en masse to focus on changing the system little by little.
On the other hand, I absolutely get why so many don’t understand the movement. It is hard to get behind something that seemingly has no purpose other than to voice discontent. I am the sort that, when confronting a problem, figures out an acceptable compromise or solution, and goes for it full-tilt. I don’t see that happening here yet.
So I see both sides and am no economist, but I’m starting to research and am coming down on the side of the protesters, for sure. Just the fact that Elizabeth Warren is on their side is a huge plus in my book–I think she makes a lot of sense and is in favour of protecting citizens’ interests over large corporations’. She is one smart lady, and I’d put my faith in her solutions. At least we’d be trying to fix something instead of just waiting for it to get worse! Kudos to the protesters for at least stepping up and starting the process.
I haven’t done the calculator, and I’m not really for or against, OWS, but… I had the opportunity to actually spend some time down there when I was in NYC, and to see the protests and I dont’ think these people are lazy at all. They just want so badly to be heard.
There’s definitely a huge variance of wealth and the power that the wealthy have – I don’t consider myself to be LAZY, for sure, and though I’ve always worked my tail off, I’ll never be the 1%… just the way it goes.
But when I see the protestors described as lazy and out of control or what not, I do have to disagree. That’s absolutely not at all what I saw the days I spent in NY. (Also, I think the police presence was really over the top, and excessive. Did you know they’ve got police guarding the wall street bull at all times? Wonder how much that costs.)
Didn’t I see Susan Sarandon and Kanye West at one of those Occupy Wall Street protests? Are they protesting themselves as I am sure they are in the 1%????
39%…I like the number, at least.
With my income alone, I’m in the 59%. My boyfriend’s income is variable based upon clients, and he hasn’t been at it long enough to estimate what his yearly income is (plus his client base is still building), but if I were to take his last check and assume all checks are the same, we up up in the 69%.
Pretty nifty calculator, by the way. I’m all over financial calculators, too.
I got 59%. I’m extremely proud of this number.
First of all I became a mom at 20. Yeah I’m 35 and have a kid in high school. Birth control is not 100% effective. I’m part of that 1%!!
Secondly, every college credit I earned I did as a mother. I was a rebellious kid who didn’t have plans of going to college. Until I became a mom. Changes perspective completely. I spent many years using services like WIC and food stamps and medicaid. But I also got a college degree and I swear I’m paying all that back and then some. Those programs are awesome when they’re used by people like me trying to get a hand up and not a hand out. I also believe those programs do a good job of making sure that is most often the case. If you think they’re only used by lazy people who want a hand out then you have obviously never used the system of known anyone who has. They’re a pain in the ass! Trust me!! Okay enough about my soap box.
Lastly, I am the sole breadwinner for my family of 5. This is by design. My partner and I have a child who is chronically ill and I don’t trust anyone but my partner or I to care for her.
We’re 52%. I honestly just ignore most of this stuff, so I don’t know. I’m pretty good at being able to see things from both sides, so I’m always stuck in the middle. So I just try to stay out of it, same with politics. :-)
By myself at 46%. Not terribly bad, considering I was $15K in CC debt in 1999, and it’s now down to $2K. I’m not following #owc, because while I agree with the sentiment (1% of the wealthy control the rest of us), I don’t see what purpose it all serves. Yeah, so? is my response. Don’t whine about where they are; be concerned about where YOU are. And I’m moving up a teeny bit every year. If things continue at a steady clip, I’ll retire a half-millionaire. Is that word?
~40% this year; there are 2 of us in the household but one of us is a full-time student. I get why they’re protesting. I would go out there myself… but I have to work 4 part-time jobs to keep us in the 40th percent.
16% here. Damn.
Myself – 85%
Me and the Girl – 95%
Its is wrong that I still feel poor :-( I busted my butt to get where I am today and I don’t see why everyone always wants to look towards those people to support the problems of this country. If you even put a minor tax on the 40% of freeloaders in this country it would make up a lot of this debt every president has got us into. Yet people always look for the easy ways out and just think someone else should fix it when its really EVERYONES problem. I made my own choices to get where i’m at, just like you made yours.
I get the whole “we are the 99%” but on a global scale most protesters are the 1%, you are choosing not to work and camp out and write a sign stating so. There are millions to children around the world that are homeless, illiterate and begging for food. I just wish people could rally like this for more basic human rights than “shame on Wall St.”
Here’s an article on the Occupy movement that made more sense to me. Actually, the article portion is pretty short compared to the tons of charts they use to explain what’s people are protesting. I like charts :-)
http://www.businessinsider.com/what-wall-street-protesters-are-so-angry-about-2011-10
I AM THE 41%. :)
Thanks for letting us know about this. Very creative, Wall Street Journal. I’m not actually going to put in my income to the calculator because I’m pretty sure I would get in the bottom 1% haha.
61%… sad. How am I supposed to climb out of student loans with that number and increased rental costs. I need to move somewhere cheaper. Rent is nearly 50% of our monthly salary and we are NOT even living in a house!
Including all income sources I’m sitting around 63%. Not bad for one person :)
I think my husband and I are hovering around 25-30%…but that’s because he just got out of the military and I began my freelancing business in June. He was only enlisted (which pays really poorly) and during our time at his duty station I found a job that just barely paid $150 a month. No one was hiring, and it really screwed us over. Thankfully, our debt is pretty low for now. So hopefully next year it goes up a little more. :)
39%
Highest I’ve ever been so I’m feeling pretty good about myself at the moment. Mostly because I didn’t read the comments knowing they would all be higher. ;)
@philip – Yeah, guess that’s why they put “household.” I’d be 70% w/ out the mrs. in there. But in a few years we’d be a lot higher once she gets a full-time job again :)
@Bobby – Good for you! That is impressive!
@Sarah – I like that you’re sharing your opinion – that’s great! Whether we agree or not ;) Personally, I’d tend to side with you too. I myself get a lot of tax benefits for having my own “company” aka this blog, haha… But that’s what’s great about self-employment, the US gives us benefits and WANTS us to start companies and employ people etc etc. There should be no problem if you choose to accept it and take advantage of it, just like there should be no problem if you choose to NOT own a company and work for another. Pros and cons to both sides, but at the end of the day it’s our own choices that put us where we are.
@Sense – Well said. I give you mad kudos too for speaking your mind and sharing your own beliefs with us – I can get down with that :)
@Sarah – Interesting to know! I wonder how much it costs too for all that protection, haha… good research on your end ;) See you in 3 more days!!
@Nicole – Hah! That would be something. Though as much as a fan I am of Mr. West, I’m pretty sure he just likes the attention ;)
@Yana – As long as YOU like it, then you’re a-okay my friend! :)
@Kelsey @ Zero to One Million Challenge – They’re fun, right? Even if they’re not totally in-depth, they at least get you to stop and think for a few minutes. I dig that.
@Jess – Look at you go!! That’s inspiring my friend :) Proud of you even though I don’t know you! Haha… I’m sure every single one of your lovely kids are too :) Thanks for telling us about your story.
@Jen @ Master the Art of Saving – Haha, as sad as it is I stay away from a lot of politics too. Both sides usually do have valid points and I’m not nearly smart enough to come up with some nice middle grounds without screwing something up down the road by accident ;) But at least we know our capabilities, eh?
@Jen – I ;like that –> “Don’t whine about where they are; be concerned about where YOU are.” Nicely said :) And sure, half-millionaires are awesome! Haha…
@Kristy – Wowwww… look at you hustlin’!
@Mal – You working on a game plan? If so, you’ll get up there soon :) We all start at 0%!
@Kevin – True that — we’re all here cuz of the choices WE made. And that’s on smaller and larger scales across the world. Congrats on being so successful even though you feel poor ;) At least you’re smart enough to tweak stuff if you really wanted to!
@Jenna, Adaptu Community Manager – Interesting take. I can see your point in that :)
@Melissa – Hello the 41% :)
@Chrysilla – WOW. Now THAT is what I call an article!! And it helps both the A.D.D. and the smarties! Haha… lots of pictures and lots of data, simply displayed to show us what the hell is going on :) YOU. ROCK. I still don’t know where I fall on this, but so far that’s the best articles I’ve seen, thanks! (also, love your name)
@@impulsesave – I highly doubt that ;)
@Robin – Yikes! If it makes you feel better we spend like 60% on our house :( And we owe 1/3 of a million dollars on it! I think moving to a different area would be financially smart for both of us ;) Though not sure what I’d do when I got there, haha…
@Cassie – Not bad at all! Can I borrow $100? ;)
@Megan H – Yeah that would be nice! And I’ll tell you this — once you get all your expenses low and are used to it (and okay with it), you will be sooooooo much better off once the money starts flowing in down the road! Your % of income vs debt will be so nice! And you’ll handle it a much better appreciation too, so I’ve got nothing but positive vibes for you guys :)
@Fig – Hah! You’re smart ;)
99%. Please don’t come picketing my house because I own a small business. I pay more in taxes than most people earn. All that for huge amounts of risk and a good work ethic, whether it was getting straights A’s in HS through college, to working on the weekends.
I feel like it’s unfair that I have to pay more simply because I’ve worked so much harder than other people.
My game plan? I work one full-time job and one part-time one. I am grateful for BOTH those jobs. I am trying to build experience so when I apply for higher paying jobs (which I have, but don’t get calls back for) I will have a fighting chance. Until then, budget and save. My debt is all medical and I’m on payments plan for both of them.
@too funny-Sorry, where does it say OWS are protesting small businesses?
Just me = 88%
Wife + me = 97%
We’re definitely not hurting, but we certainly aren’t rich. We’re thankful to have our jobs, and we work hard. I think a lot of the super-rich’s money is in the form of wealth, not income. Assets don’t show up in this widget.
49% – In a single-income household of 3 adults and 1 child. Needless to say, the sole paycheck is spent before it even arrives. I can’t work because childcare fees are so high it would be pointless, and the roommate has been trying to get a job for two months now with no luck.
Just wondering what % of the 99% actually feel like OWS represents their thinking. When you are trying to accurately represent the interests of everyone from 0-98.49%, it must be hard. Guess that’s why I’m pretty disengaged in this battle as well.
I blogged about Occupy Portland about a week ago.
http://retireby40.org/2011/10/occupy-portland-part-2/
I need to go down and talk to more people, but I’m not unsympathetic.
Kevin – If by freeloaders you mean health insurance company CEOs, I agree to an extent. However, in their case I wouldn’t levy a minor tax. I’d levy a 99% tax and leave a salary of $243001.12 for the CEO I randomly looked up.
44% with husband and I. That’ll be going down to 31% soon. Wow, that’s depressing.
Full Disclosure: JMoney knows my home address.
MAL: “The one thing we all have in common is that we are the 99% that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1%” I take that to mean I am greedy, corrupt and no longer tolerated.
@too funny- Oh, okay. Yeah, if you consider yourself the 1%, I can see how you would be offended.
@ J$ – What is that saying about don’t lend money you can’t afford to not get back? No can do bud ;) I’m actually looking at picking up another part time job for around Christmas!
@too funny – Or rather “you worked so much *smarter* than other people” ;) At least in the income producing category. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the past few years, is that 4 hours of working for one person can be TOTALLY different than 4 hours of work from another person. Not saying either one is right or wrong, but if you’re in the income producing business, there are certainly better ways to build it than others. And from all the links/videos people are passing over today, it seems the main difference here is the “9-5” mentality vs the “build your own company” mentality. OR rather, the 9-5a.m. work force ;)
@Mal – That’s right! Budget and save baby, you can’t go wrong w/ that!
@SupaDad33 – Yup, no assets here OR the way in which you SPEND your money too – which as people have noted on this thread already, makes a big difference.
@Miriam – Awww, I’m sorry to here Miriam :( Wonder if there’s something fun/cool you could do at home? If I come across anything I’ll give you a shout :) Not that I know what you’re good at or not, haha…
@slug | sunkcostsareirrelevant.com – HAH! Good point. I could tell you right now that I’m not in that same train of thought from what I’ve seen so far today ;)
@retirebyforty – The guy QUIT HIS JOB to protest?? Wow… now that is something. I really don’t know what to say about that, haha…
@Angella – Awww, are you guys happy though? Or working on a plan? Seems like something’s brewing if you’re going down such a large % like that :)
@Cassie – Haha, just wanted to make sure you were paying attention ;)
This is a tough call for me. What exactly do I enter?
Only my wife’s income (the stable, permanent one) – 42%
Our total annual income if my job were permanent (it ends June 2012) – 67%
Our anticipated 2011 income – 56%
Whatever pros and cons of the movement, I feel they’ve overstayed their usefulness. My father-in-law is just about as liberal as anyone I know (he used to live in SF, even) and even he was making fun of the movement on Facebook over the weekend.
I am at 98%, wife is slightly lower, and together we are at 99%.
We are both employees, don’t work in finance, and aren’t big shot executives either.
We are self-made, both work hard (9-5 doesn’t exist for us, we work nearly every evening and most weekends), have invested in our education (three grad degrees btw the two of us) and are successful, well compensated for our effort.
Our lifestyles are modest and we keep a low profile. We help out less fortunate family members, and are raising a family of our own.
Aside from our mortgage we are debt free and if we keep it up, we may be able to retire early.
And we pay taxes through the nose.
I don’t consider ourselves greedy or corrupt.Do you?
…I’ll have what “99” is having… keep hustlin!
Below 90% but I am striving to be part of the 1% one day!
57% for me but I’m not a US citizen.
By the way there was a failed attempt to hold “Occupy Raffles Place” in Singapore (our equivalent of Wall Street) two weeks ago, but not a single person turned up. I’m sorry for USA, but I have to add that honestly there is no need to hold such a protest in Asia because Asia is booming!
Whoah! You got quite the comments from this! I’m in the lowly 42%, but I make quite a bit for the area of the country that I live in. I think it odd that they can even begin to go with a flat income-based model. Even the government goes into a little more detail when figuring in assistance (I worked in a social services office for quite awhile.) Things like the number of people in the household (we have 7), or the fact that I pay my own social security tax (which obviously burdens me a bit more) will play into it quite a bit. And who can forget, that while making a mere $40,000 may seem like we’re super poor, we can buy a 4 bedroom home here in Nebraska for less than $80,000. (Suck on that. Kidding. But it admittedly helps to stretch the dollar, you know?)
Awesome article.
81% between the wife and I. We have no debt minus the house. We both contribute our company match to our 401k. Our biggest expense is actually daycare for 2 at 750 a month more than our house payment. Once that is gone in a couple years our savings should take off. Honestly it feels kind of weird to have only 19% of Americans make more. I expected us to be lower in the chain.
@Edward Antrobus – It’ll be interesting to see how long it’ll go, tha’s for sure. And even moreso if anything POSITIVE comes out of it! While I’m still pretty hesitant to choose a side, I do wish there to be a good outcome from it all. Guess we’ll find out soon :) Or never.
@99 – Nope! I would personally like to shake your hands and tell you face-to-face how AWESOME that is! :) You’re taking advantage of what America offers us: freedom. Freedom to work however much, or litle, you’d like according to what outcome you’re shooting for. Congrats on all your success so far!
@Bobby – Right?
@Evan – I think that’s the other 99%’s dreams too to be honest with you ;) The 1%, as many have already voiced, is NOT only corporations or their CEOS.
@iwantmyhdbflat – Hah! Really? That’s interesting where these things are popping up :) Thanks for sharing.
@Linsey Knerl – WOWWWWW I think my DOOR cost $80,000! haha… good for you :) You def. know how to put priorities first – I just bought on a whim.
@FB – Man, those daycare costs are off the chain. I wonder if it’s that expensive all over the place, or just your area for some reason? I’m guessing all over, but I don’t have kids so who knows ;) That IS gonna be a great bump once that’s cut out!
I’m curious what 99 (and wife) do. I don’t know of many non-executive level, non-finance, positions that pay that well at companies (usually it is corp development/executive positions that pay well). And you aren’t in medicine or law (based on your educations). Consulting with MBA’s? Even my friends that work at MBB with HWS MBA’s don’t make that much. I’m guessing sales.
My wife is a teacher at 74th percentile herself. Between we each have two master’s degrees and two unfinished doctorates.
Eh, we’re hoping for #2 and as someone already mentioned the outrageous daycare costs, there’s no way we could afford daycare for 2. So I’ll stay home, my salary wouldn’t even cover daycare for 2! Right now my son is in 3 days a week part-time and it’s costing us nearly $1000/month. I looked at those work-at-home jobs, but damn, most are just scams and pyramid schemes!
@too funny – Yeah I’m super curious too :) Maybe he’ll stop on back and share? I was gonna guess startup or full-time blogger (hah!) but he said he was an employee… though some of my blogger friends have employees too. It’s a riddle wrapped in a conundrum!
@Angella – Haha, yeah – there’s a lot of junk out there. Is Craigslist big in your area? I used to find some pretty interesting gigs in their “etc” section. It, too, is filled with 99% junk, but every now and then you find a gem and can’t believe someone would pay you for whatever they’re asking of you. Though mainly they’re one-offs. Maybe check out our Side Hustle Series! In particular, the one that’s about to drop tomorrow ;) You’ll get a kick out of it… and you can DEF do that at home, though probably not with your children listening.
According to the Motley Fool, most of us in the United States ARE in the top 1%…of the world. You only need an income of $34,000 or so to qualify. It’s all relative!
98% – we live in NYC, so it doesn’t feel like much at all. We don’t live extravagantly and live below our means (most of the time). Only debt we have is our primary home’s mortgage, an investment property’s mortgage & a couple thousand left for my student loan.
Our earning power will continue to grow, but since my husband is in the entertainment biz, his income fluctuates and is undependable. We’re not strapped, but still think several times before laying down $ for anything substantial. For example, we finally got a new coffee table…took us 3 years! Before this, we were using a slab of old pine resting unsteadily on top of some rusted metal thingy….don’t even remember where we found it….
@Morgan Polotan – I believe that. But I don’t think this Occupy bizness is talking about the world ;)
@donkee – Hah! That old slab sounds wonderful, actually :) And I totally understand that NYC money – boy… everything is SUPER expensive up in there! Even more so than DC which is nuts… good you’re always thinking first before splurging, as always :) Nice seeing ya here!
Very true! It’ll be interesting to see if they last the winter. How do you think OWS compares to the Tea Party? They seem like tangential movements to me…
Oh man, I have noooo idea… I try my best to stay away from learning any more about the Tea Party – every time I dig in I get frustrated ;) I’ve def. heard their name mixed w/ OWS, just not sure in what light.