• DagwoodIII@piefed.social
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    3 months ago

    Here’s my take on it.

    Read Hunter Thompson’s nonfiction book, 'Hell’s Angels."

    There’s a chapter in it about the economics of being a hippie/biker/dropout circa 1970.

    A biker could get a Union stevedore job, work six months, and have enough to go out on the road for two years. A part-time waitress could earn enough to support herself and her boyfriend.

    • poVoq@slrpnk.netM
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      3 months ago

      This is still largely the case. The problem is that there are not many skilled manufacturing jobs around that allow you to drop in and out like that, and that rental prices in larger cities have gone through the roof.

      Sure, those are somewhat related to the economy at large, but also very specific issues that have less to do with general poverty or income levels.

        • Melchior@feddit.org
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          3 months ago

          In Germany minimum wage for a 20h/week waitress job would be 940€/month + tips after taxes. The boyfriend would get unemployment benefits of 500€/month. The main issue here is cheap housing, but especially in east Germany and more rural parts of the country, you can still find flats for 500€/month. It is obviously living on the cheap, but entirely possible.