ABSTRACT
In a sense, the depiction of middle class life in the United States has contributed to the income gap muddle. This chapter demonstrates that the nation's middle class is divided into three component parts and analyzed in the context of certain problems confronting it—and the reality of the situation. The parts are Lower middle class, Middle middle class and Upper middle class. Admittedly, the lower middle class is more akin to the working class of old and it confronts more economic problems than its counterparts above them, but working class as a descriptor is slowly becoming dated. The squeeze on middle class families and households simply means too little income for the goods and services needed to live a middle class lifestyle. A number of solutions to the alleged middle class squeeze have been proposed in recent years. In general, they involve economic interventions that are designed to impact family incomes or expenditures.
