42% of US millionaires say they're not rich

Source.

I've tried to not be outraged by this. I've failed miserably. If you've got more than a million dollars in assets... Hell, if I had half of a million dollars right now, 90% of my worries would vanish easily.

It feels more and more like America values having lots of money much more than it values having enough to get by.

Depends on where you live, and where those assets are tied up at. if I got 500k in a retirement plant that I can't touch for thrity hears and a decent house, yeah, I might technically be a millionaire if I managed to liquidate everything.

So yeah, depends on soem factors.

Still agreed with 500k - I'd be able to do quite a bit with that, like, buy a house.

Happiness is zero-gee with a sinus cold.

Do you know how paltry a million dollars is anymore? You can't retire on that much and expect to live a worry free life. Between the taxman and inflation and the rapidly degrading value of the dollar owing to the Feds blowing our money on frivolous shit like the welfare state, things really aren't that way anymore.

Oh yeah and many parts of the country have much higher standards of living than you think a million dollars might get you. A million dollars in San Francisco barely buys a modest (as in not cramped but not exuberantly large) home. And then you have the fact the "survival wage" in such places is measured in double digits per hour. So if you want to live beyond the poverty line in retirement for such areas with a million dollars, you better expect not to live long.

There was a time when 60,000 dollars was felt as "wealthy", nowadays that doesn't even pay the bills in many locations. Same reasons caused that as is causing this today.

(And I read an article about this 3 days ago)

"Allah may guide their bullets, but Jesus helps those who aim down the sights."

I think people are missing the point. I don't know of any nation that's supposed to be made of at least 50% rich people. Economics just don't work that way, or at least in free enterprise they don't. Rich means to be able to buy a lot of luxuries, not necessities. I mean, I'd like to buy a new game or two every week or so, but I won't go do that because I need to eat (plus pay the electric bill to plays those games in the first place). Nah, what I'm getting here that we might have moved into a materialistic period where all people can think of is that they want (and think that want means need) more.

The thing about making witty signature lines is that it first needs to actually be witty.

I don't see anything wrong with that, of course the word "rich" means having more money compared to other people around me.

42% of US millionaires are full of shit

edited 17th Mar '11 11:15:04 AM by vanthebaron

Untitled Power Rangers Story

...or are living IN HAWAII (or other dense metro area).

Seriously, when the AVERAGE house costs over 600 thousand dollars, having a million bucks might not make you rich, really.

Multi-millionaires? Yeah, they're just whining.

EDIT: Okay seven million not being enough? Jeez, cry me a river. That's plenty.

edited 17th Mar '11 11:31:20 AM by pvtnum11

Happiness is zero-gee with a sinus cold.

Did the study adjust for the cost of living?

edited 17th Mar '11 11:29:32 AM by LoveHappiness

"Had Mother Nature been a real parent, she would have been in jail for child abuse and murder." -Nick Bostrom

Hm, I suppose if they can't access it or they're not earning anything, it's easy to think of themselves as not rich.

Well, that'll do it.

edited 17th Mar '11 11:39:13 AM by Deboss

Fight smart, not fair.

Maybe the problem lies in these people not living within their means. Anybody who's known successful people knows how difficult it is (particularly men) for them to give up their Big Fancy House.

I'm a skeptical squirrel

As far as I'm concerned, you're rich if you can afford to buy what you want and not have to worry about living expenses. So, most spoiled suburb kids who get to own all the latest game systems, and they'd just be considered middle class by most standards.

^ They'll live to regret it. There really is no excuse to not start saving immediately.

I'm a skeptical squirrel

Saving for the future doesn't really matter if you don't get to enjoy the present. Ofc putting stuff aside makes sense, its just that some people have an obsession with "saving for their retirement" that borders on the pathalogical.

Yeah, there's no point in continually saving if by the time you get around to spending that amount you've become rather bitter by not spending at least some of that time or money enjoying yourself. On the other hand, spending all of the time causes new things to become less special, less of a "I bought it and it's mine" and more of a "I have others".

Moderation for everything, including moderation in your moderation.

The thing about making witty signature lines is that it first needs to actually be witty.

"Some people"? Who?

At any rate, I wouldn't call anyone pathological for furnishing a nest egg for themselves. Where else is it going to come from? Pensions? Ha.

More important, however, is the mobility which money brings you. If things go south, you can move to someplace with better employment.

edited 17th Mar '11 11:59:53 AM by johnnyfog

I'm a skeptical squirrel

Choosing to invest in an incredibly expensive house in an overcrowded urban area doesn't make you Not Rich. It just makes you rich and a bad investor.

If those same people ditched their egos and settled for an apartment (like most people with lower incomes are FORCED to do these days), they wouldn't be fretting so much about whether the money would be there or not in the future.

Psychologically, America has invested a lot invested in houses, just like it has a lot invested in cars. But when the numbers stop supporting the psychological investment, which do you value more - spending your money wisely, or clinging to an idealized vision of the American Dream that the economy just isn't there to support?

Same thing goes for vehicles. Too many people driving huge vehicles and then feeling that they're poor because they're pouring money into the gas tanks instead of trying the subway for a change.

Furthermore, I think Guantanamo must be destroyed.

Well, how many people in the household? For a single person, $60,000 is anywhere from modest to fairly nice depending on where you live. (Incidentally, where I live it would be closer to "fairly nice.") On the other hand, for a family of four... yeah, you're not paying the bills no matter where you live, unless you want to go to a lower standard of living.

And that's the thing. It's one thing complaining about this when poverty is effectively not a problem. But when you've got people who can't even afford a poor standard of living, often through no fault of their own beyond being born into poverty, I find this sort of bitching insensitive at the very least. Seriously, if someone told me this to my face, I would tell them to "get some fucking perspective."

^^ Agreed. I may not be able to afford a house here ever, but I'm fine with renting. I don't view it as pissing my money away, as I do get something in return for my money - a place to live and keep all my stuff.

And yeah, I just kind of sigh when the SUV folks gripe about paying over 80 bucks to fill up their tank a week. Gee, no one made you buy, it, right?

edited 17th Mar '11 12:14:19 PM by pvtnum11

Happiness is zero-gee with a sinus cold.

I have a state pension that (whilst low) could still probably keep me alive, plus free healthcare.

I dunno, just encountered a few people who seem to have no consideration for the journey, and everything focussed on the destination. And in general if your money is sat around incurring interest it's good, but if you aren't actually spending any money at all its bad, because its not encouraging the economy.

Vets are having trouble living at even middle class rates on the pensions we get now.(Except officers, they are fine)

But most that have retired in the last 10-15 years get by by getting a decent consulting job based on what they did in the military, or starting up a business after they retire.

Screw Houses. Aparments for everyone. We need to start building Hives so that this REALLY starts being Holy Terra

TALOSTALOSTALOSTALOSTALOSTALOS

hive's would save a lot of space...*ponders*

Untitled Power Rangers Story

Of course that means the oceans can turn into dust bowls for all we care, what with the environmental impacts and such.

TALOSTALOSTALOSTALOSTALOSTALOS

Don't really see much point in getting angry at people for wanting a higher standard of living than I do.

You can't even write racist abuse in excrement on somebody's car without the politically correct brigade jumping down your throat!

Reality check.

edited 17th Mar '11 1:39:05 PM by Grain

Anime geemu wo shinasai!