Is that meant to be ironic or not? It is a fact that [real] incomes have not risen for decades, and now , at least in europe, we are facing catastrophic consequences

https://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/pikettys-inequal...

> It is a fact that incomes have not risen for decades

Is this a fact?

I just checked the data from the US Census Bureau [1]. Here is what I see (all numbers inflation-adjusted to 2021 equivalent [2]).

Note: I chose 1994 as the comparison year since that was as far back as the Census data I looked at goes.

1994 median individual income: $44,618

2021 median individual income: $60,008

1994 mean individual income: $58,005

2021 mean individual income: $83,039

[1] Source: https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/income-p... . I used the 'Worked Full-Time, Year-Round' data since that was available for both 1994 and 2021.

[2] Using the PCE inflation index, which includes energy and food prices: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/PCEPI -- I used January 1994 and January 2021 as the reference points.

I have spot checked the data cited there to compare with the Census data...

The 'median' earnings data they cite comes from the BLS 'usual weekly earnings' release.

One can check that release on the bls.gov website. It is labeled "Series Id: LES1252881500". I compared Q1 1994 to Q1 2021, inflation adjusted using the PCE index:

1994: $750

2021: $983

That is an increase of 31.1%. The Census data which I cited previously is annual earnings, not weekly, but it seems relatively consistent with the BLS data, as the Census data showed a growth rate of 34.4%.

In short, both sets of data show relatively consistent income growth over that period.

no increase in purchasing power though. what good is more money if you can't buy more things

Both the Census and BLS data I cited above is adjusted for purchasing power differences between 1994 and 2021.