"N2EY" wrote in message
om...
"Bill Sohl" wrote in message
ink.net...
"N2EY" wrote in message

[snip]

Your point?

That something needs to be done.

One factor that hasn't been mentioned is the effect of societal
changes, particularly in the middle class.

40 years ago, it was typical for Dad to work and Mom to stay home with
the kids and they all lived a comfortable if not luxurious
middle-class existence. (Yes, there were plenty of exceptions, but as
a rule if Dad had a good job, Mom did not have to work outside the
home when the kids were small).

Today, two-career families are the rule rather than the exception, and
almost always by necessity. First it's to pay off their own
educations, then to afford a house, then kids, then the kid's
education, then retirement. And that's if they're lucky and all goes
well!


Much of it is due to changing expectations as to what is acceptable as a
standard of living. The typical family 40 years ago in the major
metropolitan areas either lived in an apartment or in an 800 sq. ft. house.
A family with a single income today can still afford an 800 sq ft house.
However that is now considered unacceptably small. They want a 1200 sq ft
house as a minimum. That is just one example of changing expectations that
have driven us to two-career families.

Dee D. Flint, N8UZE