If The Economy Is So Great Why Can't Most People Miss One Paycheck?

[Billy000]

The economy is only doing well if you are in the top 10%. For everybody else, not so much.

because people do not know how to save and we live in an instant gratification society. 75 to 80 percent of the country lives paycheck to paycheck, no matter how the economy is doing.

So you’re just going to ignore the basic facts about the cost of living all over the country? For a matter of perspective, the well-paid engineers working for Google cant afford to live by themselves and must roommate in groups because the cost of living in San Francisco is astronomical in comparison.

Then do not live in SanFran.

What am I supposed to do about the high cost of living in SanFran?

For that matter...why is the cost of living there so high?

Lol living somewhere cheap and making a comfortable living is relatively rare if you are in the bottom 90% of earners.

Then get out of the 90%. My wife and I went from the 2nd 20% to the top 10% of income earners in less than 5 years. It can be done with some hard work and determination.

Lol good god dude. Obviously it isn’t even mathematically possible for most people in the bottom 90% to become the top 10% because then it would no longer be the 10% lol. The reason why wages are so low for most workers is because corporations maximize profit by spending as little as they can legally get away with on their labor force. That’s just inherent flaw in capitalism.

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

However, some people are going succeed no matter what.

Yes, some. Amd some people are going to be Hollywood actors, and professional baseball players. But only some.
My family wasn't exactly poor, but it wasn't awash in cash, either. And I literally starved for much of my time in college. We got evicted from a house when one of our roommates could not pay his rent, and none of us could cover it. And this wasn't unusual. The line at the plasma center always went around the block. And then we always had the additional "Bloomington police tax" to deal with. Bloomington is a very poor town and it relies on the fines collected from the IU student body. One of their favorite past times was watching students lock up their bikes to anything but a bike rack, letting them walk away, then putting a u-lock on the bike with a phone number you could call to pay the fine and get your bike unlocked. That is, if they didn't have the van out, cutting locks and impounding bikes.

Of course, if you drove a mile in any direction, the locals had their bikes locked up wherever. It was a student tax.

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

People who are in trouble after missing one paycheck are simply idiots.

Ah yes, the true republican colors. Please keep saying this as loud as you can.

 

[Oldstyle]

Anyone who can't go a few years without a paycheck coming in if they really needed to isn't planning ahead

What planet do you people live on?

I live on a planet where WAY too many people don't save a damn thing out of their paycheck and then turn around and whine that they need help when something bad happens and they don't have money coming in! Newsflash...bad shit happens! If you want to spend all of your money as it comes in then you're going to have an issue when a crisis hits. If you're THAT stupid...then you deserve exactly what you get!

There was a time when Americans were known for their self reliance. I miss that time!

 

[Oldstyle]

People who are in trouble after missing one paycheck are simply idiots.

Ah yes, the true republican colors. Please keep saying this as loud as you can.

This has zero to do with political affiliation. It's all about common sense. Not having money coming in for two weeks shouldn't be a crisis just as having to provide food and water for yourself for four or five days following a hurricane shouldn't be a crisis! Why? Because with a little thought and planning you SHOULD be prepared for life's challenges! But you liberals don't believe in self reliance! You want a cradle to the grave nanny state where even the stupidest people are taken care of.

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

This has zero to do with political affiliation.

Well,you speak for yourself, but I can be certain that your message will resound with republicans. And horrify democrats.

 

[Oldstyle]

This has zero to do with political affiliation.

Well,you speak for yourself, but I can be certain that your message will resound with republicans. And horrify democrats.

It will "resound" with anyone with a dollop of common sense...the only ones that will be horrified by the concept of self reliance are those that want others to take care of them after they make horrible life choices!

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

It will "resound" with anyone with a dollop of common sense..

Haha, no it won't. Again, keep saying it. Loud as you can....

 

[Flopper]

There is truth to that. My niece wanted to go to college to be a marine biologist. Asked her why, and she said she loved dolphins. It took a little doing, but we explained to her that when she wants to see dolphins, go to Sea World. In the meantime, learn something that will land you a career.

She graduated with a biology degree, and she's still waiting tables at a restaurant in Florida.

And that is the problem with Higher education today. It is like a burger flipper, there are too many kids graduating from college with massive debts, while one of my friends who happens to be black, opened a trade school, where kids can get dirty learning about construction, heating and air conditioning, plumbing and other high paying skills where the need is great. Supply and demand, you have too many "educated" people the demand is down, you dont have too many brick layers, welders, the demand is high, so is the pay...

I think a lot depends on what you like to do. I worked in construction for 3 years full time and worked summers in college. I hated it. I don't like working outside in freezing weather or on roofs when when it's hundred degrees. I prefer to work with my brains instead of my hands. As I said, it all depends on what you like. As long as you don't have to do work you hate and unfortunately that is exactly what happens to many people that don't get an education.

There is value in a college degree that transcends just getting your first job. In college you get a broad base of knowledge on which to build. It teaches you to solve more of life's problems. It gives you future reference points for discussing art, entertainment, politics, economics. You learn how to communicate with people at all different levels and different mediums. You learn how to write and most of all you learn to study. Over the long term it will pay off.

When it comes to life time earnings, you are far better off with a college degree. On average, those who have a college degree earn almost twice as much as those who do not. According to the U.S. Census Bureau. Completing college is huge. Over a life-time, a college degree is generally worth almost a million dollars. That's money that can be used for saving, for fun, for whatever. The financial benefits of a college education are significant, and they're very real.

Perhaps in your days but less today. By the time you graduate college, get a job, start earning money, it's time to payoff your loans which could take many years and even past a decade. Compare that to a blue-collar worker who starts earning money at the age of 18, doesn't acquire massive debt, and if smart enough, saves or invests money during that time.

When I was my nephews age, I purchased the rental property I was renting at. I was on my own since the age of 20. My nephew? He's still paying off loans and living with his mother now entering his mid 30s.

If his mother were not alive, or otherwise deny him the ability to live with her, he'd probably be repaying his college loans into his mid 40's. While he makes much more money than I do, it would take him nearly to retirement to catch up to me.

Sorry this post is so long and probably off topic.
She should certainly be able to get a job with a Biology degree. It's consider a STEM profession which means there is high demand. My grand daughter is in her 3rd year of biology and has a lab job paying more than she made as a waitress.
The average college debt is 28,500. That's a lot of debt for a kid just starting out but in comparison to what college is worth over a lifetime it's not much at all.

Yes, there are kids with over a hundred thousand in debt but this is certainly not the norm. It you look at those students you'll usually find they have:

• Gone to expensive schools and lost financial aid and scholarships due to low grades or had substantial increases in family income.
• Taken out additional college loans to pay for for personal expenses, off campus housings, foreign study, auto expenses, ect.
• Taken on post graduate degrees such law or medicine.
• Many students are unsure of their major and by the time they decide, they have added two years to their 4 year degree, doubling their college expenses.

Unlike high school grads, most kids that graduate from college today need a salary well above minimum wage. Unfortunately they don't have the specific jobs skills and experience employers are looking for so they have to settle for lower salaries while they get those skills and experience. Thus we see the internet full of recommendations to skip college and become a plumber or whatever.

However, once the college grad gets the specific job skills and experience they need, they become in demand because they not only have specific job skills but have skills they have learned in college such as problem solving, professional writing, foreign languages, general knowledge in many fields such as politics, government, economic, finance, history, ect which make them valuable employees as they move up the ladder. The result is their college degree begins to payoff and they advance rapidly compared to a high school graduate.

Here is a real life example from my own family. My nephew graduated in anthropology and he had college a debt of about $18,000. Since there were practically no jobs in the field, he went back to school and got a Masters in Library Science which took just over a year which brought his debt up $26,000 but he was able to get a job in a public library making a bit less than teachers but enough to live on. After two years he went to work for the goverment as a research librarian. After a year he got a job with Google in the information architecture. He got some additional training they paid for and after 2 years he went to work for a consultant that did information system design. 3 years year later he went to work for a multinational as a department head in their information design department. His salary now is over $170,000 and his college degree was paid off years ago.

What Is the Average Student Loan Debt After College? | Credible

Correct, she would do fine if she could get her foot in the door. Thats' the trick. She had high grades all during college, and she went to visit my cousin up in Maryland who was a supervisor in the lab. She couldn't even help my niece. My cousin was extremely impressed on how much she knew and had very high hopes for her. My niece moved to Florida because she had a better shot at getting a job in a lab. No luck after several years.

The big question is if it's worth the expense of college and do you make out in the long run? Sometimes yes, and sometimes no.

Generally yes. Typically, they do one of two things they take a job at lower pay not as a waitress but as say a clerk in a biological lab, or as an assistant or in sales just to get a foot in the door or they go back to school and get a Master's. I believe the first is better because you have lots options. The key is being able to work at a low salary to gain experience and of course that can be hard. The problem with a Masters degree without any experience, you're not all that more attractive to employers because employers want experience. Long gone are the days when an employer hires because they see long term potential. They need employees that can produce from their first day.

What I found really shocking is the number of people that get degrees like your niece did and end up in allied professions such as a sales manager in a biological supply house, a healthcare coordinator in a hospital, or chief financial officer if a medical supply company. Years ago, I graduated in Engineering and ended up as a manager in a technical support firm, then went into consulting and adult technical education.

 

[Flopper]

The big question is if it's worth the expense of college and do you make out in the long run? Sometimes yes, and sometimes no

It's a fair Q Ray

Which ends up a STEM debate

Consider , some domestic medical students have six zero's of debt entering our HC arena

Meanwhile we're reciprocating foreign medical students on in, from socialist countries that paid for their education....

One asks a lot less than the other......One gains citizenship , while the other is a natural citizen.....

Who do you think hosptial administrators hire?

~S~

I guess that would depend on what line of work you’re in. If you’re a registered nurse, they will hire anybody and everybody. There has been a shortage of nurses for the past few decades.


Sent from my iPad using USMessageBoard.com

You are correct, nurses are always in demand. My daughter had 3 interviews and 3 job offers within 3 weeks of graduating school and taking her NCLEX. Good nurses are hard to find.

Because it's hard job with a lot of responsibilities and getting to be an RN today is 4 years of hard courses.

 

[Harpy Eagle]

The big question is if it's worth the expense of college and do you make out in the long run? Sometimes yes, and sometimes no

It's a fair Q Ray

Which ends up a STEM debate

Consider , some domestic medical students have six zero's of debt entering our HC arena

Meanwhile we're reciprocating foreign medical students on in, from socialist countries that paid for their education....

One asks a lot less than the other......One gains citizenship , while the other is a natural citizen.....

Who do you think hosptial administrators hire?

~S~

I guess that would depend on what line of work you’re in. If you’re a registered nurse, they will hire anybody and everybody. There has been a shortage of nurses for the past few decades.


Sent from my iPad using USMessageBoard.com

You are correct, nurses are always in demand. My daughter had 3 interviews and 3 job offers within 3 weeks of graduating school and taking her NCLEX. Good nurses are hard to find.

Because it's hard job with a lot of responsibilities and getting to be an RN today is 4 years of hard courses.

Actually the RN is only 2 years, but it is damn hard and very intense. The work at hospital is very hard, physically demanding and many of the people that get their RN will not do it.

 

[Flopper]

However, some people are going succeed no matter what.

Yes, some. Amd some people are going to be Hollywood actors, and professional baseball players. But only some.
My family wasn't exactly poor, but it wasn't awash in cash, either. And I literally starved for much of my time in college. We got evicted from a house when one of our roommates could not pay his rent, and none of us could cover it. And this wasn't unusual. The line at the plasma center always went around the block. And then we always had the additional "Bloomington police tax" to deal with. Bloomington is a very poor town and it relies on the fines collected from the IU student body. One of their favorite past times was watching students lock up their bikes to anything but a bike rack, letting them walk away, then putting a u-lock on the bike with a phone number you could call to pay the fine and get your bike unlocked. That is, if they didn't have the van out, cutting locks and impounding bikes.

Of course, if you drove a mile in any direction, the locals had their bikes locked up wherever. It was a student tax.

Just saw a piece about homeless college students. They mentioned an estimated of 65,000 college students being homeless at some point in their college career. A college president describes being approached by a student whose living under a bridge and was looking for food. So when kids say they are starving college students, sometimes they really mean it.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

The big question is if it's worth the expense of college and do you make out in the long run? Sometimes yes, and sometimes no

It's a fair Q Ray

Which ends up a STEM debate

Consider , some domestic medical students have six zero's of debt entering our HC arena

Meanwhile we're reciprocating foreign medical students on in, from socialist countries that paid for their education....

One asks a lot less than the other......One gains citizenship , while the other is a natural citizen.....

Who do you think hosptial administrators hire?

~S~

I guess that would depend on what line of work you’re in. If you’re a registered nurse, they will hire anybody and everybody. There has been a shortage of nurses for the past few decades.


Sent from my iPad using USMessageBoard.com

You are correct, nurses are always in demand. My daughter had 3 interviews and 3 job offers within 3 weeks of graduating school and taking her NCLEX. Good nurses are hard to find.

Because it's hard job with a lot of responsibilities and getting to be an RN today is 4 years of hard courses.

Actually the RN is only 2 years, but it is damn hard and very intense. The work at hospital is very hard, physically demanding and many of the people that get their RN will not do it.

I worked with RN's when I was delivering and repairing medical equipment years ago. The most common complaint by them was working with the Doctors. I never met one that didn't think all Doctors were assholes.

 

[progressive hunter]

However, some people are going succeed no matter what.

Yes, some. Amd some people are going to be Hollywood actors, and professional baseball players. But only some.
My family wasn't exactly poor, but it wasn't awash in cash, either. And I literally starved for much of my time in college. We got evicted from a house when one of our roommates could not pay his rent, and none of us could cover it. And this wasn't unusual. The line at the plasma center always went around the block. And then we always had the additional "Bloomington police tax" to deal with. Bloomington is a very poor town and it relies on the fines collected from the IU student body. One of their favorite past times was watching students lock up their bikes to anything but a bike rack, letting them walk away, then putting a u-lock on the bike with a phone number you could call to pay the fine and get your bike unlocked. That is, if they didn't have the van out, cutting locks and impounding bikes.

Of course, if you drove a mile in any direction, the locals had their bikes locked up wherever. It was a student tax.

Just saw a piece about homeless college students. They mentioned an estimated of 65,000 college students being homeless at some point in their college career. A college president describes being approached by a student whose living under a bridge and was looking for food. So when kids say they are starving college students, sometimes they really mean it.

wouldnt that be their own fault since they made the decision to go to college when they couldnt afford it??

better to work for a few yrs and save than be homeless

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

However, some people are going succeed no matter what.

Yes, some. Amd some people are going to be Hollywood actors, and professional baseball players. But only some.
My family wasn't exactly poor, but it wasn't awash in cash, either. And I literally starved for much of my time in college. We got evicted from a house when one of our roommates could not pay his rent, and none of us could cover it. And this wasn't unusual. The line at the plasma center always went around the block. And then we always had the additional "Bloomington police tax" to deal with. Bloomington is a very poor town and it relies on the fines collected from the IU student body. One of their favorite past times was watching students lock up their bikes to anything but a bike rack, letting them walk away, then putting a u-lock on the bike with a phone number you could call to pay the fine and get your bike unlocked. That is, if they didn't have the van out, cutting locks and impounding bikes.

Of course, if you drove a mile in any direction, the locals had their bikes locked up wherever. It was a student tax.

Just saw a piece about homeless college students. They mentioned an estimated of 65,000 college students being homeless at some point in their college career. A college president describes being approached by a student whose living under a bridge and was looking for food. So when kids say they are starving college students, sometimes they really mean it.

There is nothing that says that once you are in college, you have to remain there until complete. You can stop going for a while and work for several months or a year or so and then return back to college.

 

[progressive hunter]

It's a fair Q Ray

Which ends up a STEM debate

Consider , some domestic medical students have six zero's of debt entering our HC arena

Meanwhile we're reciprocating foreign medical students on in, from socialist countries that paid for their education....

One asks a lot less than the other......One gains citizenship , while the other is a natural citizen.....

Who do you think hosptial administrators hire?

~S~

I guess that would depend on what line of work you’re in. If you’re a registered nurse, they will hire anybody and everybody. There has been a shortage of nurses for the past few decades.


Sent from my iPad using USMessageBoard.com

You are correct, nurses are always in demand. My daughter had 3 interviews and 3 job offers within 3 weeks of graduating school and taking her NCLEX. Good nurses are hard to find.

Because it's hard job with a lot of responsibilities and getting to be an RN today is 4 years of hard courses.

Actually the RN is only 2 years, but it is damn hard and very intense. The work at hospital is very hard, physically demanding and many of the people that get their RN will not do it.

I worked with RN's when I was delivering and repairing medical equipment years ago. The most common complaint by them was working with the Doctors. I never met one that didn't think all Doctors were assholes.

who cares as long as theyre good doctors

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

However, some people are going succeed no matter what.

Yes, some. Amd some people are going to be Hollywood actors, and professional baseball players. But only some.
My family wasn't exactly poor, but it wasn't awash in cash, either. And I literally starved for much of my time in college. We got evicted from a house when one of our roommates could not pay his rent, and none of us could cover it. And this wasn't unusual. The line at the plasma center always went around the block. And then we always had the additional "Bloomington police tax" to deal with. Bloomington is a very poor town and it relies on the fines collected from the IU student body. One of their favorite past times was watching students lock up their bikes to anything but a bike rack, letting them walk away, then putting a u-lock on the bike with a phone number you could call to pay the fine and get your bike unlocked. That is, if they didn't have the van out, cutting locks and impounding bikes.

Of course, if you drove a mile in any direction, the locals had their bikes locked up wherever. It was a student tax.

Just saw a piece about homeless college students. They mentioned an estimated of 65,000 college students being homeless at some point in their college career. A college president describes being approached by a student whose living under a bridge and was looking for food. So when kids say they are starving college students, sometimes they really mean it.

Absolutely. We had an extra bedroom that we would let people flop in, when needed. And we had at least 4 different people who stayed in it for stretches, because they and their roommates got evicted. And it was telling that they could always find places available for rent any time of year and eventually move out. This was because of constant evictions. And the jobs all paid minimum wage. I worked at a local bakery, and my paychecks would bounce from time to time.Working during all your available time would net you about $150 a week... and you were lucky to have rent of only $300, with bills and food expense... do the math...

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Anyone who can't go a few years without a paycheck coming in if they really needed to isn't planning ahead

What planet do you people live on?

I live on a planet where WAY too many people don't save a damn thing out of their paycheck and then turn around and whine that they need help when something bad happens and they don't have money coming in! Newsflash...bad shit happens! If you want to spend all of your money as it comes in then you're going to have an issue when a crisis hits. If you're THAT stupid...then you deserve exactly what you get!

There was a time when Americans were known for their self reliance. I miss that time!

I found this several years ago when the discussion came up, and I was pretty surprised at it myself:

Many jobless in U.S. don't collect unemployment

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

I guess that would depend on what line of work you’re in. If you’re a registered nurse, they will hire anybody and everybody. There has been a shortage of nurses for the past few decades.


Sent from my iPad using USMessageBoard.com

You are correct, nurses are always in demand. My daughter had 3 interviews and 3 job offers within 3 weeks of graduating school and taking her NCLEX. Good nurses are hard to find.

Because it's hard job with a lot of responsibilities and getting to be an RN today is 4 years of hard courses.

Actually the RN is only 2 years, but it is damn hard and very intense. The work at hospital is very hard, physically demanding and many of the people that get their RN will not do it.

I worked with RN's when I was delivering and repairing medical equipment years ago. The most common complaint by them was working with the Doctors. I never met one that didn't think all Doctors were assholes.

who cares as long as theyre good doctors

They never said anything about good or bad doctors. But for whatever reason, there is always conflict between RN's and Doctors.

 

[progressive hunter]

Anyone who can't go a few years without a paycheck coming in if they really needed to isn't planning ahead

What planet do you people live on?

I live on a planet where WAY too many people don't save a damn thing out of their paycheck and then turn around and whine that they need help when something bad happens and they don't have money coming in! Newsflash...bad shit happens! If you want to spend all of your money as it comes in then you're going to have an issue when a crisis hits. If you're THAT stupid...then you deserve exactly what you get!

There was a time when Americans were known for their self reliance. I miss that time!

I found this several years ago when the discussion came up, and I was pretty surprised at it myself:

Many jobless in U.S. don't collect unemployment

well unemployment is a form of government welfare even though they paid into it,,

so maybe they just couldnt subject themselves to being a burden