the profession of Palin's uncle has little to nothing to do with how Palin grew up....as to the profession of her mother and father, maybe I don't understand the definition of the working class as the term "working” describes many people of differing income levels…to me it simply means those who must work for their living.
That would loop in the vast majority of the middle class, include east coast professionals and educated elites and the like. This negates the meaning of a term like "working class" as it is commonly understood as distinct from "middle class." Very few people have enough in savings to live off of their investments. A college professor married to a lawyer and currently making $240,000 are not working class because their lifestyles would decline to nothing if they quit their jobs.
Sarah Palin is good at hitting working class cultural buttons without actually having the background. It's one of her great strengths.
I have a good perspective on this because my father is a contactor so he reads as blue collar to everyone in his personality and tastes, BUT he is a trained engineer and successful businessman who makes as much or more than many professionals. So it's not all about wealth. But in Palin's case, she is neither working class in lifestyle OR in the wealth with which she was raised.
