How come most Americans are poor?

An Australian get subsidised college tuition, free healthcare and great social security. I know of many people on the dole for most of their lives. Interestingly, their taxes are quite low when compared to most G8 countries. I thought America is a rich country, how come most Americans are poor?

 

I always thought Americans' had a lot of money!

 

I'm not going at "Americans" or anything, but some people just aim to low. Many kids in my school think making 40k a year is good. They just have no goals, all they want is to make a casual living..Just my take on it.

 

Maybe Americans are using all their money to build powerful weapons to kill all those poor Iraqi people. Maybe they shoould cut their spending on Star Wars program and defense budget and put money where it is really needed: education, health.

 

Those words sound wise to me. Too bad that those who rule this world haven't feel starving in their whole life....

Dev0115, if you want to live with $40,000 per year is a goal. The real pathetic thing is to earn $40,000 per week and work 12 hours per day

 

There's actually some truth to this. America spends over $500 Billion per year on the military, or approximately 25% of the budget. Another significant chunk goes to debt service, while the majority of the rest goes towards Social Security and Medicare, which are both relatively broken programs.

It also depends on what do you consider poor? On a per capita basis, Americans make about 20% more than Australians, and on a purchasing power per capita basis Americans make ~30% more. The average American is also taxed less than the average Australian (and far less than the average European).

However, there is a greater separation of poor and rich in the U.S. than almost any other industrialized country in the world. This disparity is because the U.S. has not implemented many of the graduated taxes and social programs that other countries have, and why America has a disproportionate amount of the world's Millionaires and Billionaires.

 

Yea but military industry gives food yes ... It is all circle and what you make you have to use sooner or later ( weapons ) If you don't use it there is no need for new stuff and there is no production at the end ... that is how world works
Oh and americans sure are not poor people .....

 

Most americans are retarded poor they arent as medium salary is over 2K so and so but there industry is in debt and colaps .....

Why do i care i have my own problems in my own shity country

 

In general, I don't think Americans are poor.

 

$2K per what, week/month/year? The average American makes about $40K/year. If you factor in cost of living, Americans are richer than all but 2 or 3 tiny countries (e.g. Luxembourg). However, Americans also have a TON of poor people, proportionally more than most other industrialized nations. We also have a massive debt, and collapse would not at all be unthinkable, as w3bmaster points out.

 

maybe killing is our business and business is good

maybe your an ass for suggesting such a thing (first part)

I agree with your 2nd point, those two things could always use more money I'm sure....but just b/c you throw more money at something, it may not even come close to fixing the root problem

 

Americans are not poor, if Americans are poor what do you call the rest of the world?

America is one of the strongest most wealthy country, definitely not poor...

 

But Australians have to live in Australia. As a Kiwi I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy (j/k!!!)

Phlegm...

 

Those of you who think Americans are rich know nothing about this country. First off, 42% of American, almost half the entire population, have less than $1200 in the bank in savings. I know first hand because I worked at a large bank.

Second, the average American owes about $10,000 in credit card debt, and this doesn't include student loans, auto loans, mortgages, etc. Not only are most Americans not rich, millions upon millions have a "negative net worth." This means they owe more money than they have, and a friend of mine is one of them. I'm an exception to this.

I know a lot about this subject because I'm currently writing an ebook that I will publish soon, and I've done a lot of research.

If you want to look at it from an income perspective, Americans make on average more than most citizens of other countries. For example, the typical American makes $33,000 per year. You have to be specific when you use the word "rich."

When you say "rich," are you talking about net worth(the money and assets you actually have), or are you talking about income(what you make per year)

Income wise, Americans make more than most. But Americans are in debt up to their eyeballs, and they are at the mercy of the credit card companies and banks. America is only rich in terms of income. But when you look at networth and combine it with debt, America is just as poor as a third world country.

By the way, the dollar is being devalued, and America may enter a stage of hyperinflation. Americans save negative amounts of money. For every 100 dollars an American makes, they spend 101 dollars.

Anyways, I will be offering my ebook here at Digital Point. Me and a colleague of mine are co-authoring it together, and we will talk about whats happening in America, why it is happening, and what Americans can do to survive and prosper.

Americans "seem" like they are rich. In reality, they are not. How can you be rich when you:

1. Don't own your own home(make payments to mortgage company)
2. Don't own your own car(make payments to car dealer)
3. Owe thousands in credit card debt
4. Owe thousands in student loans
5. Middle Class being destroyed

Don't get me started about outsourcing and the Fed. Trust me, I will talk more about in the future. I can assure that most Americans are on the verge of poverty, and this country is headed towards another Great Depression.

Most people think Americans are rich because we have lots of "toys." What they fail to realize is that most Americans have to "borrow" to pay for all those toys. The people who truly are rich, are the lending companies.

 

^ there you go, some useful insight, not just some blather about war and govt. policies.

you might know...or perhaps I'll need to buy your book but isn't something like 95% of the 'wealth' owned by like 1% of the population? something crazy like that.

 

All great points (including the rest of your post, I'm sure your e-book will be good). The average American has the potential to be VERY wealthy (in global terms), but chooses to live a luxurious life instead and are asset poor.

 

aka spending beyond your means - Americans are quite guilty of that. what good is a 3K sq. foot house if you don't have any furniture to put in it!!

I lucked out, my wife is a huge saver of the funds

 

excatly, me too, i have always though that amaricans always earned a lot!
i will be checking this thread, perhaps people will prove my thinking wrong

 

I have to agree. I also think that we as Americans need to learn how to become financially literate because we spend our money on material things. Its an addiction for Americans. We have to have the big house and expensive car to "make" it look like we are rich but the truth is that we are poor.

I once heard a lady say "Why does it seem like the more money I make, the poorer I get?" This is because when we get more money, we SPEND more money! So we are stuck in the rat race because of the way we think. We don't learn how to make money in school but I think this is the time more than ever to start.

 

Im American and I wish I made that much per year.

I dont ask for much just enough to take care of myself and maybe pay for medical bills if theres an emergency.

40k would be perfect for me