By Sam Bourgi, Senior Analyst at InvestorsObserver
A Mississippi mom working two jobs could buy 70 ounces of gold with her family's income in 1998. Today, that same paycheck scrapes together 17 ounces – while Venezuela’s political firestorm just sent gold prices rocketing to $4,424 an ounce, putting even that dwindling security further out of reach.
Two InvestorsObserver studies paint a sad picture for working American families: over 27 years, wages have lost 77% of their purchasing power against gold, trapping parents in a financial death spiral where every geopolitical shock strips away more of their shot at stability.
The study of gold-adjusted-wages exposes the generational theft. Back in 1998, the national average income bought 91 ounces of gold. Fast forward to October 2025: just 21 ounces. Last year alone had another brutal 20% plunge – Alabama families dropped from 22 to 17 ounces, California from 33 to 26, Wyoming from 33 to 16.
Just think of a single mom in Mississippi saving for kids’ college, a family home, real security – 70 ounces of gold worth of hope in 1998. Today, she stares at 17 ounces, watching her kids’ future shrink while central banks stack gold bars her wages can no longer touch.
Another study analysed the performance of safe haven assets during geopolitical conflicts. It shows why families stay vulnerable. Across crises from Iraq’s Kuwait invasion to Israel’s 2025 strikes on Iran, gold averaged 9% gains 12 months out. The dollar? A 0.19% monthly dip. Swiss franc? Up every time. Rich portfolios and nations hedge. Working families just bleed.
Venezuela proves the point in brutal real time. The US capture of Nicolás Maduro spiked gold 2.2% in hours Sunday as President Trump eyes the country’s vast oil reserves. While crude prices dipped and stocks wavered, working parents felt the gut punch: every dollar they earn buys less lasting protection overnight.
This hits dinner tables where parents whisper about skipping vacations so kids can maybe afford college one day. From Wyoming’s 33 ounces to 16, every state tells the same story – your family’s hard work funds everyone else’s safe harbor while your nest egg evaporates.
The studies expose a merciless system: while Mississippi mothers lose 75% of their labor’s value, central banks aggressively accumulate gold, corporate margins expand on suppressed wages, and asset owners compound wealth through crises their portfolios were built to survive.
Parents’ tireless work – double shifts, skipped vacations, deferred dreams – creates the economic stability that lets everyone else buy safety, while families providing that foundation watch theirs dissolve.
This is very real. It's the single mom realizing her lifetime of labor bought her children less security than her own parents enjoyed. Venezuela’s chaos made visible the rigged game American families have lived in for 27 years.
ABOUT SAM BOURGI
Sam Bourgi is a finance analyst and researcher at InvestorsObserver, bringing over 13 years of expertise in financial markets, economics, and monetary policy. His professional background spans the private, nonprofit, and public sectors, where he has held positions such as senior policy adviser, labor market analyst, and marketing director. Sam’s in-depth research and market analysis have been referenced by leading institutions and organizations, including the U.S. Congress, Department of Justice, Chicago Board Options Exchange, Bank for International Settlements, Boston University Law Review, Barron’s, and Forbes. Sam regularly appears on TV, including FOX 5 DC, CBN, KFYR TV, 11Alive, and ABC30, and is often quoted by such media outlets as Bloomberg, SF Chronicle and ZeroHedge.
ABOUT INVESTORS OBSERVER
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