• Assian_Candor [comrade/them]@hexbear.net
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              1 year ago

              There is a book you should read called Nickle and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich. It’s a journalist account of trying to live for I think 3 months on minimum wage in the US. It’s a light quick read and you might appreciate the perspective.

              Equally importantly it is from 2001 and $5.15 then is equivalent to $9 today, almost 25% higher than the current federal minimum wage

    • pup_atlas@pawb.social
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      1 year ago

      Spending less than you earn isn’t a realistic prospect for A LOT of people. In many areas the cost of living has increased so dramatically that even those pinching pennies, eating simple cheap meals like chicken and rice every night are feeling it. The inflation numbers being distributed by the government are at this point, a straight up fabrication, with no relation to how the economy is actually functioning. In terms of actual costs real people are paying, things have doubled or tripled in cost across the board since 2020 at the grocery store, not to mention how outrageous rent has become. Unless you are also doubling or tripling your income every few years, it’s easy to see where all that money is going.