The significance of the 1% isn’t that they have more money than many other people. It’s that they have so much money that they buy politicians, governments and policy and basically control human society worldwide. And, in accord with the observations of Lord Acton, they are as corrupt as their wealth is huge.

With a $34k salary, you may be wealthier than many many people around the world. But you have no meaningful influence on the system or rules currently in place. You are effectively a peon.