UNFORTUNATELY, THE POLLS ARE TELLING IT LIKE IT IS

 

…Beware, not all polls are accurate

 

Pew Research has once again explained the problems for the average American.

Anyone that follows my articles and blogs knows that I am a big fan of the Pew Research Polls.  Historically, the Pew Polls have tended to be the most accurate of all the national polls taken throughout the year. 

 

Well, the latest Pew Poll was published in August and it explains why, that even though the US economy has improved, the American public hasn’t realized it via their own experiences.

Instead of giving you long explanations for this situation, I will offer some inputs through some Pew Poll bullets that show what the latest poll inputs have to say.

·       Yes, America’s economy is improving, but jobs are still difficult to find.  That attitude has improved from 85% of Americans saying jobs were difficult in 2010, to 58% this August.  A positive change, but not big enough.

·       There was still lots of pessimism as 56% of those polled said their incomes were falling behind “the cost of living”, while only 5% said they were getting ahead. The remaining 39% said they were just “staying even.”

·       Auto sales exceeded 16 million units annually, the highest number since 2006. However, Americans have lost confidence in the future. Americans feel roughed up by the economy, and those fears aren’t fading.

·       According to the Labor Department, only 61% of experienced workers (those at least three years with the same employer) who lost their jobs from 2011 to 2013 were re-employed by early 2014.

·       In 1989, the income of the average American median family was $46,500, but after the crash & by 2013, it had only increased $200 to $46,700.

·       In 1989, the income of the average American middle-class family was $73,500, but after the crash & by 2013 it had only increased $2,900 to $76,400.

·       Average net worth in the same period declined for the median family from $84,800 to $81,200.

·       Average net worth for the middle-class family only increased from $120,200 to $159,200.

·       What’s disturbing is that before the crash, the net worth of the median family in 2007 was $135,400 and for those in the middle-class, it was at $231,100.

·       Yes, due to the 2008 crash, most everyone’s net worth’s today have declined to values of almost 24 years before.

·       As for those in the wealthy class, their wealth increased an average of 22% from their 1989 levels.

·       These figures come from the Federal Reserve’s 2013 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF). Every three years, they interview thousands of Americans. This time, 6,026 were interviewed in 2013.

·       Median and middle-class Americans not only remember the economic cataclysm of 2008, they are still suffering the aftershocks in having lower incomes and less overall wealth generation.

Yes, America’s economy is improving, but the public mood shows as a lagging indicator.

We have a peculiar prosperity. There is today a true middle-class squeeze. People’s expectations about their living standards were all set-up, back in the early 2000s, while their incomes and assets are stuck at levels of 15 to 30 years earlier. This huge gap isn’t rapidly erased, by only a somewhat revived economy.  In addition, the Republicans in the US Congress are so committed to punishing the Democrats and a Democratic president, that they are doing all they can to keep average Americans from earning better incomes from the jobs needed for rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure.

The current income and net worth gaps apply to countless numbers of average Americans. Having been so roughed up, these families all face years of catch-up in order to get back to where they once were. The reality is that they feel poorer because they are poorer. They feel less secure because they are less secure. The severity of the crisis has shocked virtually everyone.  These large income and wealth losses have compounded all American’s sense of vulnerability. The end result is that the financial crisis and the Great Recession have powerfully affected the national psyche, and unfortunately, it’s all been for the worse.

Also unfortunately, based on the Pew Research Polls, if the elections continue to keep the Republicans in control of the House and if they also take the US Senate, we can expect to be living with this poorer legacy for the nation for a very long time.

Copyright G.Ater  2014