The extreme poverty line is around $1.25 a day, and the poverty line at around $2.50. They are well above both. By global standards, they’re not poor; merely relatively poor to other Americans (which is to say, not poor at all)
Cost of living needs to be considered. It costs more to live in the United States than Mexico. Someone who’s living on the street, and eating out of garbage cans, or who is hungry because they can’t afford to buy food is objectively poor. And yes, this sort of poverty exists in the United States; and it disproportionately occurs among the elderly.
The extreme poverty line is around $1.25 a day, and the poverty line at around $2.50. They are well above both. By global standards, they’re not poor; merely relatively poor to other Americans (which is to say, not poor at all)
Cost of living needs to be considered. It costs more to live in the United States than Mexico. Someone who’s living on the street, and eating out of garbage cans, or who is hungry because they can’t afford to buy food is objectively poor. And yes, this sort of poverty exists in the United States; and it disproportionately occurs among the elderly.
That is already PPP adjusted. Here is a good blog post on the subject by Will Crouch.
Even PPP adjustment doesn’t tell the whole story. It’s not legal to live like you’re in a Harare slum in the US, whether you’re willing to or not.
Good luck finding any place in the United States you can live in for $1.25/day. Minimum wage is livable >90% of the time, but Nigerian wages are not.