Well, maybe I am too unimaginative but not being an American, I am curious where does all the money go. Reading Paul Graham's article about Ramen Profitability, I get the idea that a bare minimum lifestyle can burn as low as ~$1000 - 1500 / month [1]. Now a person is earning 6x this figure, how you don't end up saving something. Bars, clubs would only be fun to a certain extent. The only reasonable explanation I can think is, people buy everything that they don't need.