i would say 50% is conservative. if you are upper middle class, you are probably already paying 40% on just income tax. i personal opinion is that you should only be taxed on money you save - not money you spend. if you make $50,000 and spend $40,000, you should only be taxed on $10,000. the reason is simple. anything you spend money on is income to someone else. the only real income you have is what you save. today we pay taxes on top of taxes. btw, i heard the worst thing you can do is borrow against your 401k plan. to pay it back, you use money that has already been taxed then to get money out of the 401 when you retire, you have to pay taxes again.

cute little story about a young adult conversation. i own my cars, boat and house - no debt. this 20 year old thinks i'm living free.... i told him i pay $2900/year (i live in the south) on property tax on the house and another $500/year homeowner dues. that's almost $300/month which is less than he's paying on rent. he couldn't believe you can own something outright and still have to pay on it like that. and, i told him if i don't pay, they can come take it away from me. he just shook his head.