jesswzmn
what would you say is causing this?
Please dont deny these facts, because I have been reading stories stating them for years now to indicate what is going on in the USA.
So hopefully your answer will be what I am asking...and explanation as to what is the cause of these trends. I would also love to hear from Democrats and Republicans on this.
Answer
This is a very complicated question, involving many factors. You are right, the middle class in the U.S. is slowly shrinking.
Causes include rapidly mounting debt (both personal and governmental deficit spending) that has sustained our standard of living since factories and other productive jobs began to move offshore in the 1970's, increased competition from rapidly industrializing countries such as China and India, tax policies, &c.
The golden decades after WWII were very unique for the United States. Europe had blown itself to pieces during the war, and the U.S. was the only major industrialized country that was left standing. Countries like China and India had not yet begun to industrialize, and the U.S. was the only other game in town. Our factories supplied materials to the whole world: our companies supplied the products that rebuilt much of Europe in the years after the war, and also fed the early industrialization of the 2nd world nations. As we moved into the midst Cold War, Europe continued to rely on the U.S. for most of its defense infrastructure.
By the 1970's, America's post war boom was slowly wearing off. Europe had rebuilt itself, and in the decades ahead, rather than being a source of easy business, countries such as India and China slowly became competitors as their own industries developed. Real wages probably peaked around this time.
Our own industry slowly began to move offshore as our "free trade" policies, which had benefited us in the past, bit us in the rear. Companies found that workers in other newly industrialized countries were willing to do the same work for less than the overpaid American workers.
We tried many things to sustain our standard of living. First, wives went into the workforce. By the 1990's, women with families were entering the workforce not because they wanted to, but because it now took two wage-earners to afford a standard of living that previously took only one wage-earner.
In the 1950's it really was possible for a man to work at a semi-skilled job and support a stay-at-home wife, a car, a house, and several children (not in luxury -- but support them nonetheless). Today if both husband and wife do not have a college degree, they will struggle to do this, even with both of them working full time. In this sense, our standard of living has already dropped significantly.
Beginning in the middle to late 1980's, even the addition of a second member of the family to the workforce was not enough to stop declining living standards, and Americans began to rely for the first time on large amounts of debt. Personal debt has risen continuously and steeply since the 1980's as Americans seek to sustain a standard of living that is no longer sustainable.
Government debt increased rapidly as well. The fact is that the federal government has promised the people far more in Social Security and Medicare than it will ever be able to pay in the future, and already the federal government is borrowing $0.40 for ever dollar it spends.
Americans are on a crash course with a very cold reality. The standard of living that we attained in the years after WWII was not, and is not sustainable. Think about it: why should the United States have a standard of living that is so much higher than the rest of the world? To begin with, it was due to the reasons stated. Now, we simply sustain it with enormous amounts of national debt.
Both Democrats and Republicans have made their share of blunders along the way, but they are fighting forces larger than any one political party.
If you are truly interested in economics and the causes of the current economic predicament, and the rising disparity between wealthy and poor, I strongly recommend that you watch the "Crash Course" (aptly named) by Dr. Chris Martenson. You can watch the 45 minute version or the full 2.5 hour version. It is freely available here: http://www.chrismartenson.com/crashcourse
This is a very complicated question, involving many factors. You are right, the middle class in the U.S. is slowly shrinking.
Causes include rapidly mounting debt (both personal and governmental deficit spending) that has sustained our standard of living since factories and other productive jobs began to move offshore in the 1970's, increased competition from rapidly industrializing countries such as China and India, tax policies, &c.
The golden decades after WWII were very unique for the United States. Europe had blown itself to pieces during the war, and the U.S. was the only major industrialized country that was left standing. Countries like China and India had not yet begun to industrialize, and the U.S. was the only other game in town. Our factories supplied materials to the whole world: our companies supplied the products that rebuilt much of Europe in the years after the war, and also fed the early industrialization of the 2nd world nations. As we moved into the midst Cold War, Europe continued to rely on the U.S. for most of its defense infrastructure.
By the 1970's, America's post war boom was slowly wearing off. Europe had rebuilt itself, and in the decades ahead, rather than being a source of easy business, countries such as India and China slowly became competitors as their own industries developed. Real wages probably peaked around this time.
Our own industry slowly began to move offshore as our "free trade" policies, which had benefited us in the past, bit us in the rear. Companies found that workers in other newly industrialized countries were willing to do the same work for less than the overpaid American workers.
We tried many things to sustain our standard of living. First, wives went into the workforce. By the 1990's, women with families were entering the workforce not because they wanted to, but because it now took two wage-earners to afford a standard of living that previously took only one wage-earner.
In the 1950's it really was possible for a man to work at a semi-skilled job and support a stay-at-home wife, a car, a house, and several children (not in luxury -- but support them nonetheless). Today if both husband and wife do not have a college degree, they will struggle to do this, even with both of them working full time. In this sense, our standard of living has already dropped significantly.
Beginning in the middle to late 1980's, even the addition of a second member of the family to the workforce was not enough to stop declining living standards, and Americans began to rely for the first time on large amounts of debt. Personal debt has risen continuously and steeply since the 1980's as Americans seek to sustain a standard of living that is no longer sustainable.
Government debt increased rapidly as well. The fact is that the federal government has promised the people far more in Social Security and Medicare than it will ever be able to pay in the future, and already the federal government is borrowing $0.40 for ever dollar it spends.
Americans are on a crash course with a very cold reality. The standard of living that we attained in the years after WWII was not, and is not sustainable. Think about it: why should the United States have a standard of living that is so much higher than the rest of the world? To begin with, it was due to the reasons stated. Now, we simply sustain it with enormous amounts of national debt.
Both Democrats and Republicans have made their share of blunders along the way, but they are fighting forces larger than any one political party.
If you are truly interested in economics and the causes of the current economic predicament, and the rising disparity between wealthy and poor, I strongly recommend that you watch the "Crash Course" (aptly named) by Dr. Chris Martenson. You can watch the 45 minute version or the full 2.5 hour version. It is freely available here: http://www.chrismartenson.com/crashcourse
can someone send me plot summary of the movie from Wikipedia please?
K2010
just copy and paste please, no links
I have Netgar blocking word sex so I cannot look it up myself
It is "sex and the city II"
nothing is graphic there or it won't be on Wikipedia
thanks
Answer
Set two years after the first film, the film begins with Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Samantha (Kim Cattrall), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) meeting up with each other at a shop in New York which turns into a flashback to how Carrie first meets Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda in 1986 in New York City.
The film then jumps to the present, two years after the events of the first film. At the Connecticut same-sex wedding of Stanford Blatch (Willie Garson) and Anthony Marentino (Mario Cantone), Liza Minnelli appears to officiate the wedding vows and sings Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)".
The four friends now have lives that are more stressful than before: All are married except Samantha, who is now 52 and trying to keep her libido alive with hormones while dealing with menopause. Miranda quits her job after the new managing partner disrespects her once too often. Charlotte's two children are a handful and she's worried that Harry is attracted to their buxom Irish nanny, Erin (Alice Eve).
Carrie's marriage to Mr. Big (Chris Noth) has settled down, though they differ on how to spend their spare time: she loves to go out, he would prefer to stay home every night, eating take-out meals and watching television. For their anniversary, Carrie gives Mr. Big a vintage Rolex watch engraved with a romantic message, while he, much to her dismay, shows her a new television in their bedroom as his gift, which Big says they can use to watch old movies together as they did on vacation. Carrie is disappointed, as she had hoped for jewelry as a gift. She asks to spend some personal time alone in her old apartment, but Big enjoys the time to himself even more than she does, and to Carrie's dismay, asks to make it a weekly occurrence.
Meanwhile, Samantha has been approached by an Arab sheikh to devise a PR campaign for his business. He offers to fly her and her friends on an all-expenses-paid luxury vacation to Abu Dhabi. The girls happily accept, although Carrie is worried about the separation from Big and Charlotte is worried about leaving her husband alone with the nanny. Only Miranda, unfettered by a job for the first time in her life, plunges enthusiastically into studying Arabic and planning sightseeing.
Upon entering Abu Dhabi, Samantha's hormone-enhancing drugs are confiscated under UAE law. This renders her devoid of estrogen; to her great dismay, her famous libido goes dead, unaroused even by Australian men in Speedo swimwear. Charlotte tries to call Harry every few minutes. Miranda revels in the luxury surrounding her, while Carrie befriends her manservant, Gaurau (Raza Jaffrey), and learns of his long distance marriage - he can only afford to see his wife back in India once every few months.
While out shopping at the local souk with Miranda, Carrie runs into her former lover, Aidan (John Corbett). He proposes dinner à deux at his hotel, but she is noncommittal. The next day, however, she is crushed at reading a negative critique of her new book in The New Yorker, and decides to meet Aidan for dinner, although Charlotte cautions her not to play with fire. The dinner is very enjoyable, with the two discussing old times. Aidan remarks on the ways Carrie is "not like other women", pointing out that when they were engaged, she would only wear her engagement ring on a chain around her neck; now that she's married, she still isn't wearing a diamond on her ring finger, only her wedding ring. In a moment of remembered passion, they kiss. Carrie runs away in a panic and returns to the hotel.
Meanwhile, back at the hotel, Miranda and Charlotte have drinks together and discuss the difficulties of motherhood. Miranda admits painfully that being a mother is not enough for her and that she misses her job. Charlotte confesses her guilt at enjoying her time away from her daughters and her frustration with trying to be the perfect mother at all times. She drinks so many cocktails to bolster her courage to be honest with Miranda that she becomes very tipsy.
At this point, Carrie bursts into the room, crying, "I played with fire!". After summoning Samantha, she tells her friends about the kiss, and asks them whether or not she should tell Big, as she says they have no secrets between them. Miranda reflects on the events of the previous film, when her husband, Steve (David Eigenberg), told her about his affair and how in retrospect, while it helped clear his conscience, she is not sure that knowing was worth the pain she went through. Charlotte is too drunk to be any help, but Carrie already knows where she stands. Samantha counsels Carrie to wait and sleep on it before deciding anything.
Set two years after the first film, the film begins with Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Samantha (Kim Cattrall), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) meeting up with each other at a shop in New York which turns into a flashback to how Carrie first meets Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda in 1986 in New York City.
The film then jumps to the present, two years after the events of the first film. At the Connecticut same-sex wedding of Stanford Blatch (Willie Garson) and Anthony Marentino (Mario Cantone), Liza Minnelli appears to officiate the wedding vows and sings Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)".
The four friends now have lives that are more stressful than before: All are married except Samantha, who is now 52 and trying to keep her libido alive with hormones while dealing with menopause. Miranda quits her job after the new managing partner disrespects her once too often. Charlotte's two children are a handful and she's worried that Harry is attracted to their buxom Irish nanny, Erin (Alice Eve).
Carrie's marriage to Mr. Big (Chris Noth) has settled down, though they differ on how to spend their spare time: she loves to go out, he would prefer to stay home every night, eating take-out meals and watching television. For their anniversary, Carrie gives Mr. Big a vintage Rolex watch engraved with a romantic message, while he, much to her dismay, shows her a new television in their bedroom as his gift, which Big says they can use to watch old movies together as they did on vacation. Carrie is disappointed, as she had hoped for jewelry as a gift. She asks to spend some personal time alone in her old apartment, but Big enjoys the time to himself even more than she does, and to Carrie's dismay, asks to make it a weekly occurrence.
Meanwhile, Samantha has been approached by an Arab sheikh to devise a PR campaign for his business. He offers to fly her and her friends on an all-expenses-paid luxury vacation to Abu Dhabi. The girls happily accept, although Carrie is worried about the separation from Big and Charlotte is worried about leaving her husband alone with the nanny. Only Miranda, unfettered by a job for the first time in her life, plunges enthusiastically into studying Arabic and planning sightseeing.
Upon entering Abu Dhabi, Samantha's hormone-enhancing drugs are confiscated under UAE law. This renders her devoid of estrogen; to her great dismay, her famous libido goes dead, unaroused even by Australian men in Speedo swimwear. Charlotte tries to call Harry every few minutes. Miranda revels in the luxury surrounding her, while Carrie befriends her manservant, Gaurau (Raza Jaffrey), and learns of his long distance marriage - he can only afford to see his wife back in India once every few months.
While out shopping at the local souk with Miranda, Carrie runs into her former lover, Aidan (John Corbett). He proposes dinner à deux at his hotel, but she is noncommittal. The next day, however, she is crushed at reading a negative critique of her new book in The New Yorker, and decides to meet Aidan for dinner, although Charlotte cautions her not to play with fire. The dinner is very enjoyable, with the two discussing old times. Aidan remarks on the ways Carrie is "not like other women", pointing out that when they were engaged, she would only wear her engagement ring on a chain around her neck; now that she's married, she still isn't wearing a diamond on her ring finger, only her wedding ring. In a moment of remembered passion, they kiss. Carrie runs away in a panic and returns to the hotel.
Meanwhile, back at the hotel, Miranda and Charlotte have drinks together and discuss the difficulties of motherhood. Miranda admits painfully that being a mother is not enough for her and that she misses her job. Charlotte confesses her guilt at enjoying her time away from her daughters and her frustration with trying to be the perfect mother at all times. She drinks so many cocktails to bolster her courage to be honest with Miranda that she becomes very tipsy.
At this point, Carrie bursts into the room, crying, "I played with fire!". After summoning Samantha, she tells her friends about the kiss, and asks them whether or not she should tell Big, as she says they have no secrets between them. Miranda reflects on the events of the previous film, when her husband, Steve (David Eigenberg), told her about his affair and how in retrospect, while it helped clear his conscience, she is not sure that knowing was worth the pain she went through. Charlotte is too drunk to be any help, but Carrie already knows where she stands. Samantha counsels Carrie to wait and sleep on it before deciding anything.
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Title Post: If the millionaires and billionaires are getting richer, the middle class shrinking & number of poor rising?
Rating: 98% based on 9457 ratings. 4,7 user reviews.
Author: Unknown
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Rating: 98% based on 9457 ratings. 4,7 user reviews.
Author: Unknown
Thanks For Coming To My Blog
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