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How's that supposed to work?
(lemmy.world)
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this post was submitted on 12 Mar 2024
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In case you're wondering how someone can have such an unhinged opinion about labor: Conservatism is the belief in natural hierarchies, that some people are just better than others. This lady makes a living wage, and she deems service staff to be beneath her, therefore they are not allowed to enjoy the same America as she does.
They're not necessarily that unhinged from a moral perspective. They're just incredibly privileged and ignorant.
They truly believe that because they didn't get stuck with a low-wage job that it must be an active choice that people make, and that people should strive to be better to improve society.
And when you point out that they're privileged they see it as an insuly - like you're saying they didn't earn their way. And that's the real rub. Many wealthy people absolutely do work their asses off, and from their perspective all that work has paid off. What they don't understand is that their success is a mixture of their hard work AND luck.
Saying they've been lucky shouldn't diminish their work. I think everyone who works hard to be a success should have that opportunity. We're not asking that their hard work be ignored. We're asking that everyone else's be recognized with a living wage.
My current total comp puts me in the top 1--2% for my country (based on reported incomes). The difference between the billionaire class and me is massive; I still have to budget for my bills, expenses etc.
That said, I am fully aware that I'm in a privileged position.
I grew up in government housing and suffered malnutrition as a child because my single working mother couldn't afford enough food. I worked my arse off in school and was lucky enough to be eligible and accepted into a scholarship programme for University; I would not have been able to attend otherwise.
Since then I've had relatively good career opportunities and have taken advantage of them. I tried hard and continue to do so because I know what it's like to not have enough.
I think that I worked hard to get where I am. I do not consider myself rich (where some people might understandably do so), but I know what it is like to be wanting.
Despite my hard work, I do not in the slightest think that I got to where I am based purely on bullshit like grit and determination. I have absolutely taken advantage of opportunities in front of me, but I was lucky to have those in the first place. I think I deserve to be where I am, but I also think plenty of others also deserve it and are deprived of the chances that I got by pure happenstance.
Yes, you have to work hard to change your lot in life, but to say that hard work will solve everything is ludicrous.
I'm entirely on board with a living wage, UBI, and anything else to make things more equitable. No one should have to worry about feeding their family. And I'm happy to pay more tax to make that a reality.