my connection with the tea party

[kandrathe]

Furthermore, over 17% of our population earns below the median income here, only 5% of theirs does there.

And, to address why the US may be at 17% of the population below Median income... It's not a small homogenized country like Denmark. Let's compare Denmark to a State (e.g. New Hampshire) within the US. Even within the US, a state like Maryland hardly compares to Mississippi. Or, let's compare the US to the EU.

Second, comparing to median income as a measure of poverty is misleading. This is why the US poverty rate is calculated as a measure of those who cannot afford the necessities of life, rather than a measure against average income.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications.../2046.html

According to the CIA world fact book, US has 12% (2004) living in poverty, Denmark has 12.1%(2007).

Perhaps, the median income of those in the US is such that 50% of the median income is not all that bad, in comparison to living in poverty in an undeveloped nation. In other words, being poor in the US (again states differ too) does not compare to being poor in say India. Location is everything. Living in New York City is very different than living in New York State away from the city.

Finally, you'd need to look at where the poor originate. We have a pretty huge immigration rate, and many of our new citizens begin at the bottom of the ladder. Some have fallen from upper rungs due to their own bad choices, or are victims of circumstances (including those implemented by government).