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is that "working class" doesn't mean what it used to mean
There's certainly not the same large industry and union breeding grounds anymore, I think it just mostly means poor now.
snottyotter-
I think it just mostly means poor now.
I'd disagree (although I'm talking only in terms of huge sweeping generalities). I think "working class" seems to have a similar meaning to "real Londoner" in that it ties together a thread of nationalism and social conservatism with a family background of poverty (or at least non-wealth). Inasmuch as it is the opposite of "middle class" it doesn't really describe people's current situation. Many "middle-class metropolitan liberal elites" earn less than they could as a plumber/electrician (although they might have family backup that would stop them ever falling on really hard times). As some have noted above, home-ownership (perhaps through council-house purchases) have given people who identify as working class a much bigger financial stake to defend than many middle class young people who can't get a foot on the property ladder.
ffm
Reading just a few of these links I'm beginning to wonder if the underlying factor behind all of this is that "working class" doesn't mean what it used to mean (if it actually means anything at all).