Household income plunged in 2009

Household incomes plunged for the second year in a row in 2009, as fewer families earned over $100,000 a year and the ranks of the poor rose, according to census statistics released Tuesday.

Incomes are down about four percent since the recession began in December of 2007. That year, median household income was $52,384.

Median household income last year was $50,221, down more than $1,500 from the median income of $51,726 that the Census Bureau reported for 2008.

Almost one in five households--19.7 percent--reported incomes of $100,000 or more in 2009, the census reported.

That was down almost a full percentage point from 2008. In contrast, almost one in four families earned less than $25,000, an increase of one percentage point.

via www.washingtonpost.com

Comments

[Dave Guzman]

OT: Hi Jodi, not sure if you caught this, but the first elected Greens MP in Australia Adam Bandt (currently possessing a lot of power in our hung parliament) has just quoted you in his maiden speech. Zizek also got a mention in his latest interview.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/science-has-spoken-on-climate-its-now-up-to-politicians-20100930-15ydp.html

"We all have a very short period of time in which to respond to the climate emergency facing us, to this planet's rapidly dwindling condition and to the nagging feeling many of us share that this way of life simply isn't sustainable. We're all in this together but we should never forget the amazing things humans are capable of when our creative labours are unleashed. We chose to go to the moon - and we made it. To quote Jodi Dean, the Apollo project boldly projected the 'we' of a common humanity aspiring to break the bonds of particularity and reach beyond our imaginations."

[Jodi]

Dave--thanks for letting me know. I am very pleased and excited!