America - The not-so wealthy country

The image of the USA is often of riches and wealth. It is far from the reality. It is a society riven with a wide gulf between ultra-rich and the other end of the spectrum. The middle class is disappearing at a great clip, in large measure accelerated by the GFC.

The latest stats on the welfare of the USA makes for sober reflection.

"Results of a new survey show just how close to the financial edge the majority of Americans are.

76% of respondents don't have enough savings to cover six months of expenses in case of an emergency, financial news site Bankrate.com reported Monday its monthly survey which forms its Financial Security Index.

27% of the respondents reported having no emergency savings at all.

In terms of comfort level of savings, the findings show that those who feel less comfortable outnumber those who feel more comfortable two to one.

With millions of Americans lacking healthcare, the chance that a health emergency could wipe out any possible savings and bring financial catastrophe may seem all too real. Even with some level of healthcare coverage, exorbitant costs can crush any savings, or force people to add to credit card debt.

Also, a report this month from the Economic Policy Institute highlighting the devastation cuts to Social Security and Medicare would bring found that "Many of America’s 41 million seniors are just one bad economic shock away from significant material hardship."

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Mahler's Prodigal Son

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