Then & Now

A recent post was brought to my attention by Kleinheider of Volunteer Voters, who was informed of this post by The Cracker of the blog LeftWingCracker, who initially read the post found on The Flypaper Theory. (Still learning blog etiquette with regard to sourcing)

Jeff of The Flypaper Theory takes a serious look at the economic differences between his generation, Generation X, and the generation of his father:

For years, I've wondered why my parents, at my age, seemed to be so much better off economically than I currently am. They were already well on their way to having significant retirement savings, and at the same time were able to build a big house, followed by several large editions.

This morning in the shower I figured it out.

In 1966, my parents purchased a two-bedroom house off Perkins for $13,000. During the twelve years we lived there, they managed to add a den, master bedroom and half bath to the house, as well as build a large workshop in the backyard. When we moved into our newly built house, their combined income was five times the original purchase price of their first house.

My wife and I purchased our three-bedroom house off Shelby almost five years ago. For our combined income to match the growth of my parents' income over a 12 year period, as expressed by the original value of our house, in the next seven years our income would have to increase eleven-fold. If our incomes were to match my parents' in pace of increase, in 2014 we would be making almost $700,000 a year.

That's definitely upper middle management salary.

I recommend everyone read the entire blog, because it is absolutely mind blowing to consider the financial differences of a couple generations. For many of us who are Generation X or Generation Y, this post will give you something to think about. For Democrats, deeply rooted in the fundamental ideas of organized labor and education, think about this:

But compare that to my parents' occupations at the end of their 12-year period. My father was maintenance manager of the plant where he worked. My mother taught in the Memphis City Schools. Definitely not upper middle management.

Perhaps I'm just wishing for "It's a Wonderful Life" to come jumping off the screen, and the ol' Bailey Building and Loan to help fight off the corporate evil of Mr. Potter. But maybe the United States has become one great big "Pottersville." If that's true, I think it's time for a change.