"The plaque showing the federal poverty level for a family of four in 2002 – about $18,000 – would be located about 25 miles west of Salina, at the exit for Ellsworth, Kansas. Eighteen miles beyond, in the town of Wilson, would be the spot for the 'zero income' plaque (assuming the good people of Wilson would accept that dubious distinction).

That's it for the incomes of half of all U.S. households. They would fit within a 43-mile stretch, across only two Kansas counties. (See this map to find Salina, Wilson and the other landmarks in the model.) "