<div style="margin: 12px 0px; font-family: arial; color: #333333; background: #ffffff; border: solid 4px #e5e5e5; width: 100%; clear: left;"><div class="CM_CTB_Content_Wrap" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;background-color: #ffffff;"><div style="border-bottom: solid 1px #dcdcdc; white-space: nowrap; margin-bottom: 8px; background-color: #eeeeee ;background-image: url(http://www.clipmarks.com/images/source-bg.gif); background-repeat: repeat-x; height: 24px; line-height: 24px; vertical-align: middle; padding-bottom: 4px; color: #666666; font-size: 10px;" ><a href="http://clipmarks.com/clip-to-blog/" title="see clips that are hot right now"><img src="http://content.clipmarks.com/blog_embed/4551d179-8c86-4fa2-99ab-648f40614f2c/EBD56494-DF78-4692-BB32-1C3B0EC9D13D/" alt="" width="19" height="19" border="0" style="vertical-align: middle; margin: 0px 4px; display: inline; border: none; float:none;" /></a>clipped from <a title="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/10/middle-class-squeeze-the-deep-roots-of-an-economic-and-social-t/" href="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/10/middle-class-squeeze-the-deep-roots-of-an-economic-and-social-t/" style="font-size: 11px;">www.dailyfinance.com</a></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/10/middle-class-squeeze-the-deep-roots-of-an-economic-and-social-t/">When we compare middle class families today with their parents a generation ago, we have basically flat earnings -- a fully employed male today earns on average about $800 less, adjusted for inflation, than a fully employed male earned a generation ago.</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/10/middle-class-squeeze-the-deep-roots-of-an-economic-and-social-t/">Today, the top one percent now takes in 16 percent of national income, up from eight percent in 1980. The top 20 percent receive over 50 percent of all income.</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/10/middle-class-squeeze-the-deep-roots-of-an-economic-and-social-t/">Seduced by cheap, easy credit, middle class households filled the gap between their flat wages and rising bills with borrowed money. While housing was rising, this debt could be offset with rising equity. But once housing popped, then assets receded, leaving only the debt.</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/10/middle-class-squeeze-the-deep-roots-of-an-economic-and-social-t/">It now takes $486 to equal $100 in 1973. A dollar bought over 300 Japanese yen in 1973; now it buys about 90 yen. The net result of this stealth depreciation of the dollar is that purchasing power has declined even as nominal wages and wealth have increased.</blockquote></div><div style="margin: 0px 6px 6px 4px;"><table style="font-size: 11px;border-spacing: 0px;padding: 0px;" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tr><td style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">&nbsp;</td><td align="right" style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;width:107px" width="107"><a href="http://clipmarks.com/share/EBD56494-DF78-4692-BB32-1C3B0EC9D13D/blog/" title="blog or email this clip"><img src="http://content8.clipmarks.com/images/c2b-foot.png" border="0" alt="blog it" width="107" height="17" style="border-width:0px;padding:0px;margin:0px;" /></a></td></tr></table></div></div>

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