Probably the most correct comment here...but also not quite right. The middle class in America, or to be more precise, almost everyone who hasn't gone to great lengths of destructive excess to ensure their life is screwed up (as opposed to actually going out of their way doing something worthwhile) has pretty much the highest standard in the history of the world. You can buy an awesome, huge LCD TV for $1000, DVD player for $69 ($169 if you want BluRay), a great shirt for $10, or pair of jeans for $40, shrimp for ~$8 / kg or less in the grocery store (who knows whats in it though), etc
And all of this is unearned...people in China, Thailand, Malaysia, etc are working 70+ hours a week in exchange for next to nothing, enough to live on and a bit. And here in the west, we buy the fruits of their labor for pennies on the dollar, and all of our energy is expended on building nicer homes for ourself, or services (massage, nails) with no lasting value. All we have to do is push a button on a computer to print money and sent it over there, and for some reason they keep sending us manufactured goods. It's really quite amazing.
And all of this is unearned...people in China, Thailand, Malaysia, etc are working 70+ hours a week in exchange for next to nothing, enough to live on and a bit. And here in the west, we buy the fruits of their labor for pennies on the dollar, and all of our energy is expended on building nicer homes for ourself, or services (massage, nails) with no lasting value. All we have to do is push a button on a computer to print money and sent it over there, and for some reason they keep sending us manufactured goods. It's really quite amazing.