#how to lie with statistics
TIL that the average US adult spends most of my monthly income on nonessentials.
This is one of those things where “average” does not mean “typical.”
Additional contextual info: The US poverty level for a household of one is $1,133. (Poverty level is used to determine eligibility for public assistance programs, as well as for statistical and tracking purposes.) Percentage of the US living in poverty at the last census was 11.4%.
How much money do you suppose Nonessential Purchases Georg has to be spending in order for these numbers to work out?
The math’s too complex for me, but I’m gonna estimate, “A Fuckton.”
This statistic sheds absolutely no light on how prudently poor folks manage their money, and if you think it does, the net effect is to make you even less informed about that topic than you would be if you’d never seen it.
Also worth noting, some of those “nonessential purchases” may well be essential if you’re poor: rideshares, for instance. If you don’t own a car, and need to go somewhere that public transport doesn’t service, a rideshare service might be the best/only way to get there.
If you work multiple jobs–especially low-status ones–there could be significant logistical barriers to bringing your meals with you (back-to-back shifts at different jobs and lack of refrigeration/safe place to put food while working are the ones that spring to mind), making it essential to buy it (usually at the closest/quickest possible place).
Online shopping (and here I’m assuming they mean the fees, not the actual items, which may be essentials) might be the best/only option if you don’t have transportation, or if you’re always working when the stores are open.
Conclusion: there are uses for this statistic (marketing, is springing to mind–if you’re trying to sell things, it’s helpful to know what people are doing with their discretionary income), but none of them have anything to do with poverty.
