The problem is not a "twisted form of capitalism". The problem is us. In the 1950s, a family could live on one blue-collar salary. You could probably live on a single blue-collar salary today, too - but you'd live like people did in the 1950s. You would eat out very rarely. You wouldn't have college debt because you wouldn't have a college degree. You'd only have one car. You'd have only one TV for the whole house. The kids would not have huge numbers of toys, and nobody would have huge amounts of clothes.

The problem is, nobody wants to live like that today. As soon as we have more income, we "need" more - more clothes, more toys, a better car, a nicer house in a better neighborhood. As we get more income, our "needs" change, driving our expenses to almost exactly match out income.

This is especially true when you have kids. If you can afford it, you're tempted to give your kids those ski lessons... that summer camp... that vacation to Disneyland... a car when they turn 16. It feels heartless to say no when you could say yes. But if you say yes to all of it, you'll spend as much as you can afford (and maybe a bit more besides), because there's always something more you could give your kids.

Note well: This is not a criticism of those with low incomes who are struggling to make it. It's a criticism of those of us with fairly high incomes who still struggle to make it.