Wait… sorry? In what world is 180k USD/year “working class”? I make the equivalent of like 70k/year before my nordic-country taxes take their share. That puts me decently well off here, at least above “working class” wage. I was in the US a couple years back, and prices were lower than they are here.

Like, at 70k/yr (before Nordic taxes), I felt like I was pretty well off in the US. Definitely not lower-end at least. How on earth does that translate to 180k/yr being “working class”?