You know why this happened, right? It's because all of a sudden, Americans just decided to be slackers! If only they'd pull themselves back up by their bootstraps... well, if they had bootstraps left...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- New census estimates show the number of Americans living in poverty is higher than previously known - reaching a new level of 49.1 million, or 16 percent. The numbers released Monday are a new supplemental poverty measure aimed at providing a fuller picture of poverty of America. They are higher than the official 2010 poverty rate of 15.1 percent, or a record 46.2 million, that was reported in September. Much of the increase in the new measure comes from rising everyday costs, such as out-of-pocket medical expenses, that aren't factored into the official rate. Americans 65 or older had the biggest poverty jump - 15.9 percent, versus 9 percent under the official formula.

Isn't that great? I can't wait to see how the clinically insane Democrats on the Super Committee roll over and kick us when we're down to show how "serious" they are about deficit reduction.