comicbookguy wrote:
It's a good question because politicians always say they are going to help "the middle class" and only tax "the rich". Rarely do they ever attach numbers to these terms because EVERYONE thinks they are in the middle, and only the most wealthy (usually those with inherited wealth) acknowledge that they are wealthy.
+1
I had a friend in middle school who lived in a badass mansion on a huge estate (custom architecture, lighted swimming pool, art on the walls and flatscreens when they were still hella expensive, etc) and he earnestly believed his family was poor. I met another guy, an adult this time, who said he made $250k/yr but that he was "poor as sh!t".
We may shake our heads at those people. But we should remember that if we earn $28,000 per year, that is more than 95% of people globally. And if we earn $52,000 per year, that is more than 99% of people globally. And yes, that is already adjusted for how much money can buy in various countries (i.e. 'purchasing power parity' adjusted, based on baskets of goods). So, from somebody else's perspective, we are those self-deluded rich guys also.