Adjusting to Inflation The economic changes in America, there has been increases in poverty. Inflation and pricing increases have led to different classes needing more financial afford basic needs. The video, Why Americans Feel So Poor | CNBC Marathon, by CNBC, shares Americans' point of view on why they feel “so poor.” The video starts off by describing how middle classes have felt a shift of security in their financial standing. CNBC states, “the middle class was once a symbol of the American dream, but the American middle class today paints quite a different picture… between a rock and a hard place” (YouTube 2023). With inflation and the cost of living increasing, it is becoming harder for people, like the middle class, to keep up with the expenses. Furthermore, someone in the middle class years ago, would most likely be able to pay their needed expenses and have some left over. With the recent inflation, many middle classers now only have enough to pay for their needs, if they even have enough for those expenses. To put into perspective on why middle classers feel “poor”, according to a “survey in 2018 found that a third of middle income adults do not have $400 to cover an unexpected expense” (YouTube 2023). The survey from 2018 does not account for the expenses in 2023, with the rate of inflation since 2018 …show more content…
People are feeling squeezed financially because they are only able to, or barely able to meet their needs. To put into perspective how costs have increased but pay rates have not, is a static by CNBC. CNBC states, “the average household income in the U.S. saw just a 16% increase over the last fifty years. In comparison, housing costs increased by 190% and college tuition shot up by nearly 264% in the same time period” (). This rise of the cost of living and expenses has limited the amount of savings or energy funds people are able to