Millions of working Americans don’t have cars. Also, you can make the median wage in the US without any collage education.
Poverty still exists, but vast inflation of what is considered’a basic standard of living’ hides a great deal of progress. People want to redefine illiteracy to mean being unable to use the internet not by the standards of the past.
The cost to participate in society is much greater.
Yeah we do have more cars. But you also need to buy one to go to work.
We have education, but you need 22 years to be employable.
It’s probably not with continuing the discussion if you don’t believe poverty exists as a concept.