The biggest conspiracy right now is the cost of living and the disappearance of the middle class. Most people are living paycheck to paycheck. Have kids and it gets even worse. Technology has advanced, but Gen Z, Millennials, and Gen X all have far less than their parents did.
$100,000 is the new baseline for a family. Single earners scrape by in most cities. Rent, insurance, groceries, car payments, school fees take almost everything. Families under $100,000 are struggling. Back in the 1940s and 1950s, one salary could support a family of 4 or 5, buy a house, pull a pension. The woman did not need to work. Now $100,000 barely covers one person. Stability is gone.
For a family of 4 on $100,000 pre-tax:
Income and Taxes
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Pre-tax income: $100,000
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Federal income tax (18%): $18,000
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State income tax (5% average): $5,000
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Social Security and Medicare (7.65%): $7,650
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Remaining after taxes: $69,350
Housing (Rent)
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Average 3-bedroom rent: $2,200/month → $26,400/year
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Remaining: $42,950
Childcare
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Two kids in daycare: $1,500/month each → $36,000/year
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Remaining: $6,950
Groceries
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Family of 4: $1,200/month → $14,400/year
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Deficit: $7,450
Utilities, Transportation, Health Insurance
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Utilities: $300/month → $3,600/year
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Car payments + gas: $600/month → $7,200/year
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Health insurance: $500/month → $6,000/year
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Total overage: $10,250 beyond remaining income
Other Essentials
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Clothing, school supplies, emergencies, discretionary spending: not covered
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Net effect: Family cannot cover all basic costs on $100,000
Even high earners are not safe. $100,000 single moms in expensive states still struggle with rent, childcare, and basic living costs. Families under $100,000 cannot afford a home. Aid barely exists. $100,000 alone offers little relief. Add kids, and maybe food stamps help, maybe not. Rules punish working families while over-income households fund programs and get nothing when disaster hits. Insurance barely protects them. Premiums and deductibles rise, locking people in financial strain. Lifestyle debt spreads everywhere. Older households stretch dollars without luxuries. Younger families spend on subscriptions, gadgets, and coffee, feeding endless debt loops. Stability is gone, families scrape, kids feel it, and the middle class continues shrinking while elites move the goalposts.
Post-2020 money printing and inflation quietly steal wealth. Low-rate homeowners from before 2020 coast while newcomers face doubled prices and sky-high mortgages. Corporate housing grabs by BlackRock and Vanguard turn homeownership into a pipe dream. PPP loans, tax cuts, and unlimited cash flow enrich elites while governments pile debt on everyone else. Rate hikes punish ordinary families, and sales taxes hit big purchases while the wealthy dodge income taxes. Every move is designed to keep ordinary people struggling while the top hoards.
$100,000 barely supports a family in 2025. Anything less and families scrape. Security evaporates, kids feel it, and the middle class keeps disappearing while elites move the goalposts.