Companies plan massive layoffs as Obamacare takes effect

[Mr.Bill]

Yeah, this argument is kind of pointless..

This country is way too big and diverse and there's way too many variables to put a label on $250k a year..

There's many, many parts of the country that even with a family and a mortgage if a family made $250 they could live like kings. They'd definitely be considered rich.

But with a family, and a mortgage, and car payments in NYC, or Boston, or LA.. That $250k could not be looked at as rich.. Comfortable? Yes. Upper Middle Class? Yes.. But not rich.

[Dylan]

Ben you do understand that paying for kids' college is a luxury most don't have. And you've mentioned before that your dad drives a BMW or something if I remember correctly. Finally yyou owned a home, which many dont.

Having expenses from choices you make doesn't mean you're not doing quite well. I think 300K would be like top 1%, yes you're not rich because you own two cars a house and can pay for all tree kids to go to school?

Seriously?

Those are luxuries you just grew up in the NoVa bubble so you don't know it.

[Spider]

I was kinda thinking the same thing. A mortgage, two car payments and a college fund would have been pretty amazing luxuries to me when I was a kid, rather than being some sort of drag as portrayed here.

Amazing where the different levels of entitlement end up getting placed.

I mean...do you know how much insurance costs on a Porsche? We need some relief!

[Dylan]

It seems they equate rich with unlimited disposable income. Kinda amusing.

[Sazari]

Rich isn't unlimited disposable income, but to me it is a significantly different lifestyle. By that I mean the differences between the upper middle class (what i would consider 250k household) and middle class, aren't very substantive. Your parents still go to work every day. You go to a public school, or a cheap private one that isn't any better quality than the decent publics. You have a house, some bigger some smaller, but no one is living in a mansion or a slum. You have cars, maybe you have a used civil while the 250k person has a BMW, but you still drive yourselves to work and deal with traffic and bullshit. You still worry about retirement, and what if you lose your job, and if your kids will get into and then afford where they want to go. Yea my car is imported and has seat warmers, but I'm still stuck in traffic next to the janitor. In terms of college, 250k is that wonderful sweet spot where if you have 2 or 3 kids you cant afford to pay for them, but you are also clearly to wealthy to receive any aid. The basic standard of living really isn't demonstrably different, it just is the same thing with a slightly fancier facade to it. The way I look at it, rich, poor, middle class, is that one group has it made, one group is f**k, and those of us in the middle just do our best to improve our lot to avoid slipping down into the poor group. Whether you make 50k, or 250k, you are still in that same position of worrying about your future, the future of your children, and busting your ass to avoid slipping into the poor group. That's not rich, materially or psychologically.

To be clear, I'm in Bill's camp. In many circumstances and many areas of the country, 250k is rich. But in many circumstances and many areas it isn't. You can't just draw a line at a fixed amount and deem anyone above it, regardless of circumstance, to be rich.

[Dylan]

50K: if I lose my job Ill have to choose between paying rent/ mortgage, feeding my kids, or keeping my 99 civic.

250K: if I lose my job ill have to tap into my emergency fund or. (*gasp*) face early withdrawal penalties for my 401K to get by for 3 months until I find a job again.

Saz and Ben: bubble dwellers who've never been up against a wall their parents couldn't pay somebody else to break down.

[The Dude]

[Sazari]

[The Dude]

[Sazari]