Quiz "Do You Live in a Bubble?"

[Tandemlovers]

I got a 33, hubby got a 37, even though he is more highly educated than I am.and his parents came out of the middle class and mine grew up poor.
His score reflected his love of action movies?

 

[unclemick]

79

?

heh heh heh -

 

[Free To Canoe]

76 I don't think I am a red neck?

 

[Options]

Heavens, I scored a 14! Remarkable given that one of my grandfathers died never having learned to speak English. Probably relates to having lived all of my adult years in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Studies have shown people who live in major metropolitan areas can acquire on average up to three times more wealth than elsewhere.

I have never thought of myself as upper-middle class, although my salary when working, even in this higher COL area, may have qualified me as such under some definitions. I'm certainly not at all interested in anything considered "upper-middle class". OTOH, a friend and I have discussed that where we live is not at all representative of the rest of the country. This can be quite good and it can also be quite bad.

 

[hnzw_rui]

You got 39 points.

11–80: A first-generation upper-middle-class person with middle-class parents. Typical: 33.

It was likely the habits (no alcohol and mostly go to cheap Chinese restaurants instead of popular chains) and pop-culture stuff that got me. Honestly though, in terms of poverty, living in the US is like living in a bubble. Even back when we first immigrated and had income that's considered below the poverty line, quality of life was better than what we had as middle class in the Philippines.

That said, what qualifies as upper middle class anyway? Given high COL in LA, I would've put myself in the middle class but not upper.

 

[devans0]

77

I could have done better but hate beer.

 

[aja8888]

69

I guess I must have been close to being a certified redneck, but quitting drinking beer spared me, however, I still like driving visits to southern Arkansas once in a while.

 

[LauAnn]

A 28 for me.

 

[pb4uski]

51 for me. Grew up upper middle class.... lived in a number of dodgy areas after college because i'm frugal.... currently LBYM upper middle class lifestyle.... and yes, I own a truck and fish.

 

[HFWR]

77



I could have done better but hate beer.

Love beer, but hate television...

 

[NYEXPAT]

11, probably good I do not live there anymore.

 

[Walt34]

I got a 28. I think not drinking beer (wine instead) and not watching much TV lowered my score despite having owned two pickup trucks and worn a uniform at work.

 

[Big_Hitter]

42? Grew up in a middle class area in the SW Houston suburbs and lived in Texas most of my life so the beer, hunting, fishing, pickup truck all "helped". Most of my friends growing up were huge rednecks.

I've never heard of most of those restuarants/chains or TV shows though.

I must have moved "up" (or down) a notch. I guess my parents are proud

 

[MasterBlaster]

Could some of you fellows please direct me to the Polo Club ?


I was to meet Biff and Penelope there.

 

[imoldernu]

I still can't figure out how time... "ever", "Three years" and number of times work into this. Answering honestly, and taking the "test" twice, my scores were 5 and 52.

Did I ever?... Purchase an Avon Product? Yup... probably back in 1947 when my aunt Winnie sold Avon for a few weeks, and I bought shampoo for my mom on mothers day.

three years ago, we went to all of the restaurants listed... now, not at all.

Lived for a year in a community under 50,000? For one year where the community was at or below the poverty level. Well yeah.. but I traveled 30 miles to work in the city in the next state, and lived there for a year.

In 80 years, the term "ever" is fraught with nuance.

 

[Nodak]

I got 58

 

[Sojourner]

33 for me, which supposedly means I'm a "first-generation upper-middle-class person with middle-class parents". And you know what... that is exactly right. Parents were about as middle class as you could get, so of course I was too for most of my life. Just within maybe the past 10-15 years I've moved a bit more into that "bubble" zone where I'm a little more isolated from mainstream middle-class American culture. Have never once watched an episode of "The Voice" or stocked my fridge with Bud Light, and I never will!

 

[Lsbcal]

I thought this was somewhat interesting, though inaccurate. There are 25 questions whose answers purport to show how insulated (or not) you are from "mainstream America," whatever that is. I scored 42, which equates to "second generation upper-middle-class person who has made a point of getting out a lot."

It's funny. My parents were working-class; we were always a bit strapped; we lived in a rural area; but everybody in the family loved to read. That makes a huge difference to a kid's future, and I notice that "reading" isn't even mentioned in the questions.

Do you live in a bubble? A quiz | PBS NewsHour

Yeah, what about that reading stuff? And let's not leave out intelligent web surfing.

From the article:

There exists a new upper class that’s completely disconnected from the average white American and American culture at large, argues Charles Murray, a libertarian political scientist and author.

Does disconnected mean bad? It seems so as the author of this equates the lower scores with living in a bubble ... and we all know bubbles are bad.


P.S. I hope the moderator does not think this is inflammatory.

 

[eytonxav]

49, but have no idea what that means.

 

[HFWR]

I've eaten at all of those restaurants, but only one - IHOP - in the timeframe specified. Didn't see Cracker Barrel on the list. Oversight?

Under slightly different circumstances, I'd have aced that puppy...

 

[Texas Proud]

60.

I'm OK with a thiner bubble, I wasn't very sheltered. I cracked up on the "have you ever been on a factory floor?" Heck I recall wishing to be inside the factory because there was heat inside. Life is good.☺

Yea, this was a question that to me meant nothing...

I 'worked' on a factory floor.... for a whole 1 week.... saw how a good number of people were missing fingers and decided it was not for me...

But, I could answer 'yes' to the question... heck, lots of them were like that...

 

[powerplay]

My score was 51.

It was sad they didn't include Downton Abbey on the TV program list. I have not watched any of the ones they listed.

 

[Lsbcal]

My score was 51.

It was sad they didn't include Downton Abbey on the TV program list. I have not watched any of the ones they listed.

Downton will doom you to a very thick bubble.

How about Vera or Nova?

 

[Moemg]

I got 56 . All those years wearing uniforms did me in !

 

[MRG]

Yea, this was a question that to me meant nothing...

I 'worked' on a factory floor.... for a whole 1 week.... saw how a good number of people were missing fingers and decided it was not for me...

But, I could answer 'yes' to the question... heck, lots of them were like that...

I did it again and noticed extra questions, after answering yes to working in a factory there were a couple of questions that prove your smarter than me.

While you saw the folks with missing fingers you left. I stayed damn near 10 years. This was after I saw my best buddy get his pant leg caught in a spinning saw arbor. Luckily his pants were just ripped off of him. That won't happen to me, I'm smarter. Glad they made me work outside in the rain, only took 3 days before I said I'm going back to school.