Figure It Out

It's the economy, stupid! -- Campaign manager James Carville during the Bill Clinton presidential drive in 1992.

   Wages are down and prices are up, according to the latest government statistics, which means a net loss for workers of 0.1 percent. Yet the overall economy is doing well, with the unemployment rate down and the number of people working on the rise.
   More than 250,000 jobs were added in October, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.7 percent. Total output, as measured by Gross Domestic Product, increased by 3.5 percent in the third quarter.
   So if things are so great, according to political leaders, how come the average American worker isn't able to set some money aside for retirement, much less pay the monthly rent and grocery bills?
   As is often the case, the numbers tell the story.

   It's true that more people are working, and production is increasing. But if prices rise faster than wages, simple arithmetic says workers are losing. All this while tax breaks for corporations and the ultra-wealthy put more cash in their bank accounts -- CDs and investment accounts -- while savings accounts offer interest rates of 1 percent or less. Effectively, if inflation is 2 percent and wage increases are 1 percent, simple arithmetic says you lose. Meanwhile, credit card interest rates are as much as 15 percent or even 25 percent.
   Do the math, and don't bother saving anything. Instead, try to pay down the credit cards. If you can, since prices are rising faster than your income.
   Meanwhile, in the face of all the problematic issues, many people still work hard to come to this country. Why? Two reasons: This is where the jobs are, and as much as we complain about politics, things are far worse in some other countries.