W Post: In aggressive bid to get noticed, O’Malley hits Clinton from the left

[Scootaloo]

4. Most Americans think of themselves as "middle class"

Even the very poor and the fairly well-off (the wealthy seem to understand that htey are wealthy, interestingly.) The reason for this is because "middle class" is not actually seen as an economic stnding, but rather a moral and cultural one - middle class is seen as 'mainstream" and "whomesome" and most importantly, "not fringe." so people even on the fringes of society, living on the skin of their teeth, will call themselves 'middle calss" in an effort to maintain their place in "normal society."

Meanwhil when pur politicians talk about hte "middle class" they invariably mean the lower tiers of the wealthy - and these people, who are catered to and pampered by the politicians, are thus convinced that htye are the middle class as well (and this also carries the feel-good cultural properties I mentioned.)

Meanwhile, as an economic grouping, the 'middle class' issteadily shrinking, with its numbers mostly going into the poor classes.