Inflation affects essential expenses such as housing, groceries, utilities, healthcare, transportation, and childcare.
Let's pretend that all of your numbers are accurate and use the average of the estimates you provided from basic Google searches of 2020 prices.
Using available data from January 2020:
1) Average 2 bedroom rent: $1093 (but let's give you a huge benefit of the doubt and say that it was $1500 for a two bedroom apartment in 2020):
4% increase = $60 x 4 = $240 (and yes, I realize that you simply can't mulitple by 4, but considering I bumped the actual average substantially, it actually overestimates the increase):
$240
2) Family of 4 monthly grocery expense: $610 (but let's give you a huge benefit of the doubt and say that the average family of four was spending $900 per month on groceries): $54 x 4 =
$216
3) Average utility costs for a family of four in 2020 was $469. So a 4% increase would mean an increase of $18 per month. But again, let's give you a huge benefit of the doubt and say the actual average was $600. $600 x .04 = $24, x 4 =
$96
Healthcare costs: tough to determine due to so many employers subsidizing substantial parts.
Gas/transportation costs rising by 5% annually. Let's pretend that both parents are big drivers and has to fill up every week. $3.40/gallon x 15 gallons x 4 x 2 parents = $408 x .05 = $20.4 x 4 =
$82
Childcare increasing by 3% (using the lower number since I used the higher number on the last two): Again, tough to quantify due to so many children being in school and not needing childcare, parents working from home, etc.
So that means an increase in these monthly bills of
$634 + healthcare costs and childcare increases. And remember, I have given HUGE increases to what Google claims was the average amount spent by a family of four on these expenses, let alone middle/lower class.
Now, let's take into consideration your claimed average of annual wage increases of 2.5% since 2020. Let's say that in 2020, both parents earned $35k. I think we both can agree that an adult making $35k, no matter where in the country, is either lower class income (based on where they live) or lower-middle class even in low cost-of-living areas.
Again, assume both parents earned $35k per year in 2020. A 2.5% increase would yield them $1750 annually. X 4 (again, it would be more than just multiplying the $1750 by four when compounding, but for the sake of simplicity) = $7000. Deduct taxes, and that leaves $4900 per month additional. Divide by 12, and you're at $408.
In other words, the difference is about $225. And that's after giving HUGE increases to the Googled numbers, rounding up when it helps your argument and down when it helps my argument. And again, that doesn't include healthcare costs/childcare increases.
So all of your side's complaining is over about $200 even after I gave drastically large increases for your argument then reality.
So, please, explain just how brutal this inflation has been on them.
If you can't, then by all means, you google the data and use numbers you can support.
The suggestion that the middle and lower classes are "full of lower education/stupid people" who can't comprehend these issues is as offensive as it is ignorant.
Clearly, it's also something that you can't comprehend as well. By all means, show us the math. Use Google to give realistic numbers. Note: I greatly inflated many of them to help your argument as much as I could.
This growing disparity has placed significant financial strain on the middle and lower classes, making it increasingly difficult for them to cover basic needs.
Again, use legitimate data to prove it. You simply can't.
