Poverty 58.97% Worse in 3 Years - 38 Million Voters Struggle with Food Insecurity & Inflation
Hon. George Mentz (JD MBA CILS CWM KSG YBhg Int'l Lawyer)
CEO & Int'l Lawyer, Chairman Police Commissioner, Chancellor/Law Professor, Frhr Seigneur Fief Blondel YBhg Datuk Seri Author 100 Books 200K Followers- Sicilian Hispanic Egyptian Asian EU Aspen Commission Chancellor WAC
Poverty in Cities Worst in 50 Years ?– The Attack on Prosperity
There is a new poverty in town.? As a law professor and economist, this is the first time in my life where I have repeatedly met professionals who are broke and have no discretionary income for their family.? Literally, I had chats this week with waitresses, disabled veterans, sports coaches and retirees who are all saying that they can’t afford the inflation that has erupted over the last 3 years. New data shows that a shocking 12.4% of Americans lived in poverty, up from 7.8% in 2021. [i]?? ?Yahoo Finance indicates that over 38 million people in the USA are living at or below ?poverty in the last 36 months. [ii]? According to Zillow, “Since 2019, U.S. rents have grown 30.4%, while wages have only grown a paltry 20.2%. Rents have outpaced wages in 44 of the 50 largest U.S. metro areas.” [iii] ??Sadly, poverty is affecting millions more families.? For example, one in three (30.2%) Bronx residents live below the poverty level in the City of New York. [iv]
Taxes, energy costs, food costs, housing costs, education costs, health care costs and insurance costs are the main contributors to this attack on prosperity. [v] ?If you are wondering why you or your friends don’t have money to take a summer vacation or they don’t have money to visit grandpa, this devastating economic data may help explain why people are hurting. Further, the statistics of crime are devestating with murder, rape, robbery, and larceny? out of control, and crime rates are keeping families locked up in their homes for fear of being robbed or molested.? [vi]
I literally spoke to a family that makes over $150 thousand dollars a year, and they do not have money to travel, go to the movies, to? give to charity or invest in the community.? To make things worse, the debt burden on people with student loans was raised by over 100% in the last 3 years. [vii]? Thus, people with college loans are paying a monthly rate that is double what it was 3 years ago and workers must pay state and federal income taxes before having the leftover cash to pay off the student debt.? It is arguable that with over $1.6 trillion student debt affecting 40 million people that the government has overcharged these families with high interest by about $200 billion dollars in the last 3 and ? years. The government is trying to give some of the money back, but it is too little? and too late. 43.2 million Americans hold federal student loan debt in the United States, with a total national balance exceeding $1.6 trillion. The average borrower owes around $30,000. [viii]? Every one of the $43 million families may have had an extra $2,520 dollars taken from them by the government in the last 36 months if interest rates went from 3% up to 7% similar to the mortgage loans rate hikes.
Here are examples of the extreme inflation in the USA. [ix] [x]
Since the election of 2020, there has been a significant increase in the costs of various essential goods and services, impacting workers across multiple sectors. The cost of a barrel of oil has surged by 100%, rising from $29 to $81, intensifying the burden on energy expenses. Wheat prices, critical for bread production, have escalated 40.65%. Similarly, the cost of cheese has risen by approximately 26.58%. Orange juice prices have seen a dramatic rise of whopping 351.46%. The price of milk has increased by 26.26%.?? Astonishingly, beef prices, particularly live cattle, have more than doubled, experiencing a 109.09% increase in just 3 years.
What is interesting is that taxes by state legislators are also slamming the middle class.? 50% or more of the costs of marijuana is state, local and federal taxes.? Medical marijuana would be cheap if the regulators and government pirates didn’t take so much. This hurts those who need medical hemp for disabilities such as arthritis or seizures.? Also on average, taxes can constitute about 40-50% of the retail price of cigarettes. For alcohol, average taxes can constitute around 40-60% of the retail price.
Families in the United States rely on a variety of essential products and services. Here are? key items that many households consider crucial. All of these costs are up between 20 and 200% across the board.
1.?? Housing: This includes rent or mortgage payments, utilities, and maintenance costs.
2.?? Food: Expenses for groceries and dining out.
3.?? Transportation: Costs related to vehicle purchases, fuel, and maintenance.
4.?? Apparel and Personal Care: Clothing, shoes, and personal hygiene products.
5.?? Healthcare: Medical services, insurance premiums, and prescription medications.
6.?? Education: School supplies, tuition, and extracurricular activities.
7.?? Entertainment: Spending on leisure activities, movies, concerts, and hobbies.
8.?? Household Care Products: Body care, hygiene,? cleaning supplies, detergents, and paper products.
9.?? Technology and Communication: Internet service, cell phones, and other electronic devices.
Just so that you know, according to experts, the cost of a domestic airline ticket is about 30% taxes for Homeland Security and TSA and other stuff. International flights are more. [xi] Thus, if you have a flight ticket that costs $200. Total taxes and fees are about $57.80. Total ticket price of $257.80
It is sad to say that many independents, populists, conservatives and libertarians have now become the leading activists against poverty, government regulations, pollution, economic tax slavery, bad policies, and the undue burdens upon the middle class.? Sadly, hasty and unplanned immigration only hurts inner-cities with inflation and overpriced rents and expensive food creating an added 11% inflation “tax” on housing for America’s most vulnerable workers in large cities while new workers can reduce wages for taxpaying citizens. [xii]
Times are really tough in 2024 and many families are making sacrifices by purchasing less services and products but still spending more money than ever before which is breaking the household budgets. [xiii] ?Additionally, housing rents in major cities have grown seven times faster than wages, as reported by Zillow, exacerbating the financial strain on workers. These surges in essential costs highlight the mounting economic challenges faced by workers, underscoring the need for measures to address the rising cost of living. In sum, USA Today recently said that Poverty is worse by approximately 58.97% from just 4 years ago which is absolutely hurting women and minorities the most in the cities across the USA. [xiv]
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[iii] New York City rents grew seven times faster than wages last year, tightening affordability crunch - May 7, 2024 (mediaroom.com)
1.???? [x] Energy Costs Destroying Workers – The cost of a Barrel of Oil is? 100% worse from $29 dollars to $81 dollars a barrel since the election of 2020.
2.???? Wheat to make bread now costs $692 dollars per unit since the election of 2020 when it was only $492 in Nov. 2020.
3.???? Cheese is up from $1.58 to over $2 dollars since election 2020
4.???? Orange Juice is up from $103 to $465 dollars per unit.
5.???? Milk has gone from $14.71 to 18.57 dollars.
6.???? Beef – Live Cattle is worse by over 100% from $88 to $184 dollars.
7.???? Housing Rents – Rental costs in big cities grew 7 times faster than wages according to experts at Zillow. [x]
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xv - 38 Million in Poverty What does living at the poverty line look like in the US? (usafacts.org) Updated on Mon, September 18, 2023