The Average American

[OldWiseGuy]

The younger generations are going to spend their lives paying into Social Security and Medicare, both of which are heading towards insolvency because the older generations are draining the system.

Adjustments will be made to the programs. There will be plenty of time for them to make adjustments to their retirement plans as well. I bought, managed, and sold an apartment building to provide the retirement I wanted. Worked out great.

Where their time comes to retire both will be reduced to means testing.

It's already happening. I pay federal taxes on 85 percent of my SS benefit (which is returned to the SS Trust Fund).

Meanwhile they won’t have personal savings like previous generations did because they are graduating college with huge student debt.

They are going to earn $1Million more than a HS grad in their lifetime. I have no sympathy for them.

The other stats are largely meaningless? Overweight, not exercising, spending too much time on social media? I wouldn’t call that meaningless.

I cited overweight as the only meaningful stat. Exercise isn't needed for general health if one is normally active. I spend at least two hours on the CF, and I benefit greatly from it. So do others by accessing my wisdom.

I will say that spending 5 hours on a cell phone isn't good unless it is necessary, but I don't believe that stat. Other stats are bogus as well.

 

[Fantine]

Americans as a whole are too focused on acquisition and consumerism--and with all the advertising they are subjected to, why wouldn't they be?

Unfortunately, all this consumerism provides lots of jobs--in retail, wholesale, manufacturing, and service. Our economy depends on our spending, and we all might suffer if it stopped.

As a senior citizen, I am beginning to look at the "stuff" I've accumulated as a little bit of a burden--and I think most seniors do. That's why they might downsize their home (not there yet).

Articles are being written about the nightmare it is for children to deal with all their parents' stuff when their parents die. They have china and silver passed down from grandma--maybe grandmas on both sides of the family. I do.

"Your children won't want your china," the article says. And yet, this china was a gift that I carried through moves to four states, even though I only used it once or twice a year.

I have my children's artwork in an underbed chest (I got rid of all but the best of it--and I should now scan it and put it on a disk).

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Americans as a whole are too focused on acquisition and consumerism--and with all the advertising they are subjected to, why wouldn't they be?

Unfortunately, all this consumerism provides lots of jobs--in retail, wholesale, manufacturing, and service. Our economy depends on our spending, and we all might suffer if it stopped.

As a senior citizen, I am beginning to look at the "stuff" I've accumulated as a little bit of a burden--and I think most seniors do. That's why they might downsize their home (not there yet).

Articles are being written about the nightmare it is for children to deal with all their parents' stuff when their parents die. They have china and silver passed down from grandma--maybe grandmas on both sides of the family. I do.

"Your children won't want your china," the article says. And yet, this china was a gift that I carried through moves to four states, even though I only used it once or twice a year.

I have my children's artwork in an underbed chest (I got rid of all but the best of it--and I should now scan it and put it on a disk).

No problem for my kids. I'm a minimalist, very little stuff (except great shop tools that my son will appreciate). I don't even have a will (no need, nothing to 'probate').

 

[mama2one]

As a senior citizen, I am beginning to look at the "stuff" I've accumulated as a little bit of a burden--and I think most seniors do. "Your children won't want your china," the article says.

good for you!

will be tough going thru my parents stuff as they have way too much and never want to get rid of anything

 

[RDKirk]

They are going to earn $1Million more than a HS grad in their lifetime. I have no sympathy for them.

Unless that was a lie they were told. Like most "averages," it can be skewed by outliers.

The information kids really need is what the modal incomes are for different bachelor degrees, as well as the modal incomes for various trade certifications (which would include high-tech certifications, not just plumbing and welding).

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Unless that was a lie they were told. Like most "averages," it can be skewed by outliers.

The information kids really need is what the modal incomes are for different bachelor degrees, as well as the modal incomes for various trade certifications (which would include high-tech certifications, not just plumbing and welding).

I agree.

Kids go to college to prepare for their 'dream' job, or just for that 'license to steal' conveyed by a degree in just about anything. So the market is flooded with unemployed poly sci grads, living in their parent's basement. Meanwhile business and industry has to import talent trained in needed fields from overseas.

 

[DaisyDay]

A interest write-off home mortgage has been the traditional means for middle-class Americans to accumulate wealth, so the $130,000 debt may not be as bad as it might appear.

 

[SPF]

As a CFP®, and someone who runs a company that partners with financial advisors, I personally find from my experience that Americans are a lot more materialistic, debt laden, and distracted by social media than is probably healthy.

I think in America it's very easy for the Gospel to take a backseat to materialism.

 

[GeorgeJ]

So the market is flooded with unemployed poly sci grads, living in their parent's basement. Meanwhile business and industry has to import talent trained in needed fields from overseas.

My kids (35 and 28) can attest to that. Both of them got their "dream degrees"...one in English, the other in Poly Sci. We (my wife and I) couldn't convince them otherwise. They aren't living at our house, but they are both working on their master's degree in something they can actually use, while they work at jobs totally unrelated to their bachelor's degree in order to make a living.

Meanwhile, many high schools don't have a viable VoTech program for kids anymore, so they aren't being allowed to learn a good trade to help them make a decent living. Nowadays kids gotta enroll in a community college to learn a trade. Yup......far too many high schools are shoe-horning students into "college prep" classes and placing far too much emphasis on shoving kids into colleges to get a worthless degree. Many of these students still don't have the education necessary to get a college degree and are having to pay additional $$$ for more classes after enrolling in college to....get this.....prepare for college.

 

[Bobber]

I think in America it's very easy for the Gospel to take a backseat to materialism.

True I think because the bar is set at a certain place that one feels they're a failure if they don't have material things A, B or C.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

My kids (35 and 28) can attest to that. Both of them got their "dream degrees"...one in English, the other in Poly Sci. We (my wife and I) couldn't convince them otherwise. They aren't living at our house, but they are both working on their master's degree in something they can actually use, while they work at jobs totally unrelated to their bachelor's degree in order to make a living.

Meanwhile, many high schools don't have a viable VoTech program for kids anymore, so they aren't being allowed to learn a good trade to help them make a decent living. Nowadays kids gotta enroll in a community college to learn a trade. Yup......far too many high schools are shoe-horning students into "college prep" classes and placing far too much emphasis on shoving kids into colleges to get a worthless degree. Many of these students still don't have the education necessary to get a college degree and are having to pay additional $$$ for more classes after enrolling in college to....get this.....prepare for college.

My high school pushed college prep as well. Those in a general or commercial course, or those in vo-tech (which was in the same building) were considered losers. I was in college prep but could get past English Literature (I couldn't stand it) so I graduate in a general course, but with enough 'credits' if I chose to go.

 

[Phil 1:21]

I know that this is a world-wide forum, so I apologize to those who are not American for posting a topic that is limited to the US.

I happened upon these statistic on the internet:

• The average American household is about $131,000 in debt.
• The average American spends $69 a day.
• The average American has $34 in their pocket.
• The average American watches 33 hours of TV a week.
• The average American reads just four books a year.
• The average American works 34.4 hours per week.
• The average American is 17 pounds overweight.
• The average American spends 116 minutes a day, or about two hours, on social media.
• The average American spends five hours a day on their cell phone.
• The average American consumes 11 alcoholic drinks a week.
• The average American exercises just 17 minutes a day.
• The average American has less than $1,000 in savings.
• The average American makes about $48,000 a year.

Of course this would include Christians, since the majority of Americans identify themselves as being Christian. Is this really the life we want to be living? So much debt, so little savings, so little time devoted to such activities as exercise and reading but so much time spent on social media.

Thoughts?

BTW, the full article can be found here: Average in America is a prison—here’s what it looks like and how you can break free

Interesting numbers, and thanks for sharing. A couple points:

1. I suspect the $131k in debt includes a mortgage and likely excludes the value of the home.

2. I'm trying to figure out how if the average American makes $48k/year and only spends $69/day (which totals $25,185/year) they only have $1,000 in savings. There's about $23k/year unaccounted for.

 

[JackRT]

33 hours a week on TV is about 5 hours a day, then another 5 hours on the phone, another 2 hours on Facebook or whatever, another 7-8 hours a day at work....sorry but you run out of time. Can't cook, sleep, commute.

Some people are very good at multitasking. A while ago police stopped a woman on Hwy 400 in Ontario for distracted driving. Aside from driving with her knees, she was talking on her cell phone, applying make up AND breast feeding a baby. She was just a Canadian so I'll bet Americans are a whole lot better at it.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Some people are very good at multitasking. A while ago police stopped a woman on Hwy 400 in Ontario for distracted driving. Aside from driving with her knees, she was talking on her cell phone, applying make up AND breast feeding a baby. She was just a Canadian so I'll bet Americans are a whole lot better at it.

I was waiting for it to say, "while playing paddle-ball out the window with her free hand."