Roughly 52% of Americans have some form of investment (mostly a 401k or the like, I think) and the "homeownership rate" is about 64%. That latter number is somewhat misleading though, as it's the percentage of people who live in a house owned by an occupant as opposed the percentage of adults who own their own property.
So one can technically be middle class and have these things, but over 100 million Americans lack at least one of those.
Aaaaaand? At least half those people could have them if they wanted to. Irrational fear of investment is a hilariously common problem, but most people rent because, for whatever reason, they prefer it.
Oh, fuck you *and* the horse you rode in on. I don't "prefer" to rent, I rent because a divorce combined with some poor luck put me tens of thousands of dollars in debt and wrecked my credit rating. That said, after watching a number of homeowning friends get absolutely creamed during the 2008 housing collapse, I'm glad to have avoided that hot mess.
The more important measure of how things are going is how militant and riotous people are, and that rate appears to be cratering as the organised riots earlier this year cave in on themselves. Do you really think that, in the likely scenario of a Trump victory in November followed by another wave of californiavirus and isolation restrictions, more people are going to have more energy for angry revolution?
Yeah, we're all too lazy and low-energy to come burn down your house. We'd rather sit around and watch TikTok vid--oops, Trump's taking that away. Guess it's time to light 'er up!
See, the thing is, these protesters aren't GenX like me. Yeah, my generation talks a good game but generally fizzles out on the rage and activism because it's too much work. We merely adopted the rage. These young ones out here now? The millenials and GenZ's? They were born in it, molded by it.
GenX still thinks there's a slim chance that if they play the game right they'll get that comfy house and the stable 401(k) and medical insurance and all the other perks we were promised.
Millenials have heard those promises but largely never seen any of it and refuse to play the game.
GenZ just flipped the table and is demanding to know who set up this shitty game in the first place.