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It's interesting to see that men are posting that they rely on their wife's job as the most important one. I wonder if that is a "Long Island" thing or if women in general all over are gaining the economic power in marriages that has traditionally (formerly?) been men's. It seems odd to see it posted here since the typical working female on LI is steretyped as a married mother, part-time, low wage, no benefits employee.
It's interesting to see that men are posting that they rely on their wife's job as the most important one. I wonder if that is a "Long Island" thing or if women in general all over are gaining the economic power in marriages that has traditionally (formerly?) been men's. It seems odd to see it posted here since the typical working female on LI is steretyped as a married mother, part-time, low wage, no benefits employee.
Very few couples my wife and I are friendly with have women who are low wage earning no benefits workers . The women are school teachers, librarians, sales people, state employees. Women in my circles seem to have the more "stable" jobs, whereas the men may earn more, but also tend to get laid off more often. Many of my wifes friends at school have blue collar husbands (construction contractors, etc) who have fallen on hard times recently.
It's interesting to see that men are posting that they rely on their wife's job as the most important one. I wonder if that is a "Long Island" thing or if women in general all over are gaining the economic power in marriages that has traditionally (formerly?) been men's. It seems odd to see it posted here since the typical working female on LI is steretyped as a married mother, part-time, low wage, no benefits employee.
Not in my generation. Need two strong wage earners in this day and age to cover these expenses. My wife is a teacher, so tenure track and staying in one place is the key. I could take my role to another metropolitan area but in education you of course build on your seniority. For now this works well for us.
Not in my generation. Need two strong wage earners in this day and age to cover these expenses.
That is true. It is very hard to get many people over a certain age on this board to acknowledge that! They prefer to call today's generation "spoiled rotten" and "expecting to have EVERYTHING they want in perfect condition instantly without having to work for it or save for it" instead of admit that the house THEY bought on a single income in the 70's now needs two incomes to support.
Very few couples my wife and I are friendly with have women who are low wage earning no benefits workers . The women are school teachers, librarians, sales people, state employees. Women in my circles seem to have the more "stable" jobs, whereas the men may earn more, but also tend to get laid off more often. Many of my wifes friends at school have blue collar husbands (construction contractors, etc) who have fallen on hard times recently.
The women working for "pin money" are less and less it seems. Now who is going to run the practices for the doctors and lawyers on Long Island?
That is true. It is very hard to get many people over a certain age on this board to acknowledge that! They prefer to call today's generation "spoiled rotten" and "expecting to have EVERYTHING they want in perfect condition instantly without having to work for it or save for it" instead of admit that the house THEY bought on a single income in the 70's now needs two incomes to support.
Theres a video on Youtube of a lecture by a Harvard Professor. I wish I could link to it, but at work I can't.
I believe it's called "the collapse of the middle class" or something. She compared a family of 4 (mom dad, 2 kids) in 1970 to one in 2002 or 2003. She looked at what they spent their money on, how much they worked, etc. She mentioned how everyone says that people today live over their heads.
When she analyzed the real data, most of the cliches about people spending money on things they don't need pretty much went right out the window.
The average family then: stay at home mom, dad works. Dad made more then than now. Family income was less, but ..that's because only one person was working. Vacation time...much less...money lost due to caring for sick kids or relatives..much more. When dad lost a job, mom could pitch in to help by working part time.
Things that people spend more on now: Healthcare, education, mortgage, child care, electronics (only SLIGHTLY, and considering that everyone has a computer..and you kinda need one..), cars (only because most families own 2 cars...per car price is less..2 people working explains why this is a necessity not a luxury.) Consumption? Not really.
The things people spend less on now, in inflation adjusted dollars, than in 1970: Clothes (Wal mart, cheap prices), eating out, entertainment.
Search for it on youtube, maybe I'll link to it when I get home.
One thing she didn't mention is that houses are bigger now on average, but that doesn't come to close to offsetting how much more people are paying for mortgages..it's over 100% per family or something.
Long story short: people who were raising families in the 1970's had it much easier than people now. Don't let any old timers tell you that had it harder walking uphill both ways with shoes made of cardboard..unless they grew up during the depression, they are FULL OF IT!! Baby boomers had one of the easiest rides of any generation in this country.
Theres a video on Youtube of a lecture by a Harvard Professor. I wish I could link to it, but at work I can't.
I believe it's called "the collapse of the middle class" or something. She compared a family of 4 (mom dad, 2 kids) in 1970 to one in 2002 or 2003. She looked at what they spent their money on, how much they worked, etc. She mentioned how everyone says that people today live over their heads.
....
Thanks for pointing out this link. It's a harsh reality, but makes me feel a little better that I haven't screwed up somewhere to be worse off than my grandparents were!
Thanks for pointing out this link. It's a harsh reality, but makes me feel a little better that I haven't screwed up somewhere to be worse off than my grandparents were!
My dad had a high school education. My mom didn't work until I was 10 years old, and then it was only part time. I did live in hand-me-down clothes, but I also had an Atari 2600, hand held video games, etc..I never went without some cool toys..not the coolest, not the most expensive, but I didn't feel like the poor kid..
My dad was able to own a home in a middle class area and have it paid off in about 15 years, and had saved enough to pay for more than half of my and my siblings college. He had a lot more time off than I have. He also retired with a pension (and he was a PRIVATE employee, not a cop or a teacher). He knows better than to tell me he had it harder then I will raising kids even though my wife and I both have higher educations.
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