Well if you take the populist view, the answer is banks and the rich who are plotting against everyone else and all this reinforced by “inequality.”
I submit for most people the real everyday squeeze may be the combination of state and federal income taxes, state and federal payroll taxes, gasoline taxes, tolls, property taxes, assorted sales taxes and fees on everything from disposing of used tires to a hotel room, car rental, phone bills and more.
And there is one final, most sinister squeeze; lotteries and casinos that pick the pockets of the poor and middle class who look for a quick fix.
Think for a minute, what do all these stresses on the middle-class have in common?
And by the way, all this can only get worse as government tries to deliver on its promises, in some cases promises made to past generations.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
Yes indeed just as poor money management and irresponsible spending are personal choices and decisions. In my town they keep passing bond issues to spend more and more on ball fields as a necessity … and then complain about high property taxes. Reading the local paper you find out that 25% of the people are struggling to meet dat-to-day expenses. Who’s to blame?
LikeLike
All the stresses you mention have one thing in common. It is the consent of those being squeezed. The taxes on labor, property and services come to you by way of your elected representatives who you either voted for or gave the power of your vote to someone else because you failed to exercise your franchise. In the case of lotteries and casinos, which can be regarded as a tax on people who are bad at math, the consent is more direct. A wager can be viewed as an act of desperation or pure entertainment but in either case it involves consent.
LikeLike