For indispensable reporting on the coronavirus crisis, the election, and more, subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily newsletter.





In keeping with MoJo‘s latest cover story, here’s a new stat to piss you off: 9 out of 10 Americans aren’t expecting a pay raise this year. So, with gas averaging $3.74 per gallon and skyrocketing food prices, that means 89.9% of you will essentially have to do more with less.

American Pulse recently asked 5,000 Americans about their best penny-pinching strategies to cope with the grim financial forecast, and here’s what they said:



70.5% will only buy the necessities

63.4% will drive less

58.9% will spend less on clothing

53.1% will comparison shop

50% will stick to a strict budget

49.9% will opt for generic products

42% will spend less on groceries

6.6% will do nothing

That’s not to say no one is getting pay raises; it’s just that they’re ending up in the wrong hands. Case in point: Miami’s interim school superintendent will receive a $16,000 bump for three months of work despite a $170 million budget shortfall. And the incoming CEO of the Chicago Teachers Union is getting an extra $20,000 to round out his $250,000 salary, even though teachers there can’t convince the school board to give them a 4% raise. Plus, five top county officials in Orange County have received a 33% pay raise in the past six months, while hundreds of lower level employees are being laid off.

These stories all too familiar, and consistent with the “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore” theme. What to do other than heed Peter Finch’s advice and yell outside your window? Well, read more and find out.