I have observed the disintegration of the middle-class including:
(each bulleted item has source material linked to it)
• the actual unemployment rate of over 20%
• the working poor who cannot make ends meet
• increasing poverty, hunger and homelessness
• decreasing government assistance i.e. SNAP cuts planned for millions of dollars
• the decrease of food pantry donations (can be seasonal or economically cyclical)
• residential foreclosures and growing homelessness
In addition, we have been personally experiencing first-hand the descent into challenging times over the last six years. I consider us, and many people like us, part of The Poor Middle Class, as I call it. I do not see a return to the kind of middle class life that our parents enjoyed after WWII. I do not see a return to conspicuous consumption that many of us got away with before 2008. The lines have been drawn. There are the ‘material haves’ and the ‘material have-nots. We have-nots have the opportunity to see things and live life in a very different way. We also do not have to go it alone.
Change can cause panic and fear. It can also be inspirational. We are personally choosing inspiration, with creative solutions and community support. That is what Back to Basics is all about for anyone who wants to live a sustainable life. It involves becoming self-sufficient for future survival and having fun learning how to make the transition. It has given me a new purpose in life, my Ikigai, as one of my Back to Basics articles describes.