Shift Your Point of View to When America Was “Better”

How good or bad something is depends on what you compare against.

There’s been a lot of “make America better again” lately. Er, wait. America should be good? No, that’s not right. Make the country really really good like it once was. Nailed it. Of course, what once was or what the country should be depends on your point of view.

Let’s say you get what you think is a good deal on a car. But then your friend buys the exact same car for 20 percent less. Suddenly your good deal feels like a rip off.

Similarly, if you’re sitting in 2009 and unemployment is on the rise, other years start to seem a bit better. Your point of reference changes, and your perspective shifts along with it.

The charts below let you shift your perspective for common metrics we often use to measure the progress or state of the country. Use the sliders to select a year as a point of reference, and the bars show how other years compare against the reference year.

Unemployment is shifty as it varies with a number of factors. So you get a lot of ups and downs over the years. Try a shift to 2009, and almost all other years have a lower unemployment rate (hence all negative values).

Not everything is fluctuates so much though. Generally speaking, the median household income for all the above income brackets was higher each year than the previous year. The magnitude of change in each bracket however is a different story.

Federal minimum wage isn’t quite the same story though. When you adjust for inflation, the value of the dollar changes things up.

But more people are working on their education. The percentage of people with at least four years of high school or college is higher than every year before. This probably plays into the rising median household incomes.

Become a member. Support an independent site. Make great charts.

See What You Get

Learn to Visualize Data See All →

How to Make Frequency Trails in Excel

Also known as ridgelines, use the method to create a compact visualization where you can easily identify major patterns and outliers.

How to Make Unit Charts with Icon Images in R

Make the unit chart less abstract with icons that represent the data, or use this in place of a bar chart.

How to Edit R Charts in Adobe Illustrator

A detailed guide for R users who want to polish their charts in the popular graphic design app for readability and aesthetics.

How to Make an Interactive Network Visualization

Interactive network visualizations make it easy to rearrange, filter, and explore your connected data. Learn how to make one using D3 and JavaScript.

Favorites

Jobs Charted by State and Salary

Jobs and pay can vary a lot depending on where you live, based on 2013 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Here’s an interactive to look.

Visualizing the Uncertainty in Data

Data is an abstraction, and it’s impossible to encapsulate everything it represents in real life. So there is uncertainty. Here are ways to visualize the uncertainty.

Interactive: When Do Americans Leave For Work?

We don’t all start our work days at the same time, despite what morning rush hour might have you think.

Marrying Age

People get married at various ages, but there are definite trends that vary across demographic groups. What do these trends look like?