The official poverty line in the United States is $32,150 / year for a family of four , maybe that threshold should be higher:   $140,000 ! When the line was set in 1963, food made up 1/3 of the average family's budget, so taking a minimal grocery list and tripling it was a reasonable calculation because food prices were far easier to track than e.g. housing prices. But in 2024, food only makes up 5%-7% of the average family's budget! Tripling the food budget to reach a minimum income no longer corresponds with "people above this line are not in crisis."

During my job search, I've seen job postings go up, stay up for weeks or months, and then get re-posted.  So at risk of generalizing my experience, if candidates can't find jobs and companies can't find candidates, is the job market working for anyone?

The Economist has run a few articles recently about "involution" in the Chinese economy, which is a concern that companies in some key markets (e.g. electric vehicles) are competing too hard. I disagree!