I understand your angle and I didn't downvote your other comment in this thread but your perspective emphasizes the math of income brackets and percentiles. However, people don't use that criteria when self-identifying their income class.

A lot of white-collar professionals making $200k simple don't consider themselves "upper class". It's not a matter of denial. I would bet that if you surveyed software engineers earning $200k, most would not use the label "upper class" to describe themselves because to do so would be strangely pretentious.

If a tiny 1000 sq ft Palo Alto house costs $1.5 million, a $200k salary does not feel "rich & wealthy". Therefore, reminding them they are in the top 5% of the income percentile doesn't change the self-identification of "middle class". From their perspective, it feels like middle class.