Economists and statisticians may argue over whether the American middle class is, in fact, shrinking, but if it is, there’s little doubt as to why: more middle income people become more comfortable and prosperous, not impoverished. In fact, the official poverty rate has  declined dramatically since the 1950’s (remembered as a the “golden age” of Middle America) with the percentage dwelling in poverty declining from 22.4% to well below 13% in recent years.

Meanwhile, two other news items provided important perspective on the status and future of middle income Americans---

-In 2007, a total of 9.57 million Americans took cruise vacations. In a 2008 national survey for the Cruise Lines International Association, 34 million of our fellow citizens say they plan a cruise vacation within the next three years.

-With the foreclosure crisis sweeping the country, numerous news reports noted second homes were disproportionately hard hit—that’s the bad news. But the good news from the Federal Reserve is that a stunning 12.5% of all households still own a second home. Among families between ages 55-75, that figure rises to 20%.

These numbers provide re-enforcement for the idea that when Americans no longer qualify as middle class, they usually leave that designation for the world of vacation homes and luxury cruises, not hunger and homelessness.