CNN is running "Middle class no longer dominates in the U.S." and it's been up for at least a week. It's all in keeping with the fundamental principle of modern journalism: if there is no news then invent some.
Usually with CNN they will get at least part of a news story correct but this one has no redeeming features of any kind. The reason for writing about it is because that theme has become one of the many bogeymen of the New Age: the Middle Class is failing and we will all end up eating out of dustbins.
Here's the graphic CNN offers as proof:
Um, if the Middle Class is not dominating, how can there be fifty percent of households within it.
If the Middle Class has already collapsed, how is it only four percent has been lost to the Lower Class. The graph shows much more migration from Middle Class to Upper Class than was lost to the Lower Class.
What the graph shows best ... is how graphs are used to manipulate opinion. Without much greater granularity within the economic strata, there's no way of seeing anything substantive regarding migrations within the economic and sociological make-up of the country but it works well to make a false point.
This kind of pernicious reporting serves only to hype fear and it's on such a nebulous basis it should have no effect but still people worry ... oh no, I'm going to lose my house, my wife, and, worst of all, my fishing pole. Man, I won't even be able to go fishin'.
Usually with CNN they will get at least part of a news story correct but this one has no redeeming features of any kind. The reason for writing about it is because that theme has become one of the many bogeymen of the New Age: the Middle Class is failing and we will all end up eating out of dustbins.
Here's the graphic CNN offers as proof:
Um, if the Middle Class is not dominating, how can there be fifty percent of households within it.
If the Middle Class has already collapsed, how is it only four percent has been lost to the Lower Class. The graph shows much more migration from Middle Class to Upper Class than was lost to the Lower Class.
What the graph shows best ... is how graphs are used to manipulate opinion. Without much greater granularity within the economic strata, there's no way of seeing anything substantive regarding migrations within the economic and sociological make-up of the country but it works well to make a false point.
This kind of pernicious reporting serves only to hype fear and it's on such a nebulous basis it should have no effect but still people worry ... oh no, I'm going to lose my house, my wife, and, worst of all, my fishing pole. Man, I won't even be able to go fishin'.
2 comments:
call me silly but if this chart is % of adults in each class Then of the loss of the middle class numbers results in twice as many going to upper class as going to lower class
why is that bad?
seems to be an overall elevation of wealth
not just the upper upper class
Same observation I make. CNN says the Middle Class falls apart but where is the evidence for that.
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