4 ms·

This is the what society sells people who are in the upper middle or just plain upper classes. I grew up poor and my parents taught me to work hard, keep my he

by SamAtt 17y ago

This is the what society sells people who are in the upper middle or just plain upper classes. I grew up poor and my parents taught me to work hard, keep my head down and hope for the best. No one ever promised me an outcome and I never expected it.

pgbovine 17y ago
This is the what society sells people who are in the upper middle or just plain upper classes. what about all the outreach that (especially public) universities do to encourage middle-class and lower-class americans to all attend a 4-year college? i don't think college in the US is something that's exclusively sold to rich kids
- Qz 17y ago
  It's not just sold to rich kids -- but there's also an implication that, for a non-rich person, going to college can enable you to move out of your income class.
- kiba 17y ago
  People think there are opportunities in field where there are none. Said people found out that it isn't the case. The university system may have lied to them. Their parents may be mistaken, etc. The system may indeed need fundamental reform or it may not. Even if the system needs to be reformed, it may just be impossible for you to agitate change. Whatever reason for the failure, it's not the end of the world. People need to keep hanging in there, and forge a new path for themselves. If others are coming to help you, that's good. If not, just solider on. Be attached to nothing. Pick yourself up and move forward. Don't expect other people to help you. If they do, be sure to pay them back in the future. That's the advice I am taking for myself if things ever go really bad. I decided not to go to college, and will probably be kicked out by my parents for not doing what they asked of me. I don't know how to make a living, much less find a place to live. I probably need health insurance to survive. It look grim as a situation. I am sure I will figure out something and make it.
- aliston 17y ago
  What is the purpose of college? If the aim of attending college is to have a credential which will lead to a job post-graduation, then we ought to axe about 2/3rds of humanities majors. If the aim is to pursue knowledge for knowledge sake and "learning how to think," WHILE simultaneously building a resume and connections, the case can be made more easily for things like journalism school. It sounds to me like the author focused too heavily on a belief in the intrinsic value of the journalism degree... why not launch your journalism career while in school?
- SamAtt 17y ago
  I don't think that has the impact that you think it does. I'm not saying I believe this now but the one of the first things I learned in life is that rich people will lie to you. They feel guilty about being where they are so they'll tell you that you can be like them when in fact they'll never really accept you. You're probably right. There are some poor people who work to send their kids to college thinking that it will solve all their kid's problems. But I think most know better and so I think a lot of that outreach falls on deaf ears. (Which incidentally isn't to say my parents didn't encourage me to go to college. Because much of society has set "having a degree" up as a litmus test for "is smart enough to have a career". But they made sure I knew enough to learn from my professors expertise while not adopting their flawed valued system)
  - pw0ncakes 17y ago
    when in fact they'll never really accept you. This is why we need to get busy fixing society.
pw0ncakes 17y ago
People in the upper classes actually can follow their dreams, as can many people in the upper-middle. However, most people misuse these terms and consider themselves a class or two higher than they actually are. Upper class starts around $5 million per year and requires extensive family connections. It's probably less than 0.1% of the population. What a lot of people call "upper class" is upper-middle. What is usually called "upper-middle-class" is barely middle. Middle class (bourgeois) means that you can have 3 or 4 kids if you so desire (and afford an appropriate house in a big city), you have sufficient help and amenities not to need to do housework, you can send your kids to whatever schools they desire, and have sufficient connections that they can do pretty much whatever they want for work. Most people we consider middle-class are actually the high end of the proletariat-- working-class, not middle (but not "underclass" either). They do their own housework, can't afford to send their kids to the top schools, are fucked if their health insurer chooses not to cover an expensive treatment, and only can only vacation occasionally, and never for more than 2 weeks. Below that are the outright poors, who are probably the majority of American society. This society is pyramid shaped, despite peoples' desires to believe the contrary.
- wallflower 17y ago
  "When the heir to the Johnson & Johnson fortune makes a highly acclaimed documentary about being rich, his father’s unexpected feedback is what sticks with him the most. Jamie Johnson is a documentary filmmaker and the great-grandson of the founder of the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical company." http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast
- yummyfajitas 17y ago
  Below that are the outright poors, who are probably the majority of American society You should visit a country besides the US to discover what "poor" really means. The US poor are overfed and underworked; real poor people are not.
  - pw0ncakes 17y ago
    The US poor have a lot of trinkets and junk food, but can't afford housing in any place worth living in, will go bankrupt if they have any health problems, have shitty jobs and no chance of advancement.

by SamAtt 17y ago

pgbovine 17y ago

This is the what society sells people who are in the upper middle or just plain upper classes. what about all the outreach that (especially public) universities do to encourage middle-class and lower-class americans to all attend a 4-year college? i don't think college in the US is something that's exclusively sold to rich kids

Qz 17y ago
It's not just sold to rich kids -- but there's also an implication that, for a non-rich person, going to college can enable you to move out of your income class.
kiba 17y ago
People think there are opportunities in field where there are none. Said people found out that it isn't the case. The university system may have lied to them. Their parents may be mistaken, etc. The system may indeed need fundamental reform or it may not. Even if the system needs to be reformed, it may just be impossible for you to agitate change. Whatever reason for the failure, it's not the end of the world. People need to keep hanging in there, and forge a new path for themselves. If others are coming to help you, that's good. If not, just solider on. Be attached to nothing. Pick yourself up and move forward. Don't expect other people to help you. If they do, be sure to pay them back in the future. That's the advice I am taking for myself if things ever go really bad. I decided not to go to college, and will probably be kicked out by my parents for not doing what they asked of me. I don't know how to make a living, much less find a place to live. I probably need health insurance to survive. It look grim as a situation. I am sure I will figure out something and make it.
aliston 17y ago
What is the purpose of college? If the aim of attending college is to have a credential which will lead to a job post-graduation, then we ought to axe about 2/3rds of humanities majors. If the aim is to pursue knowledge for knowledge sake and "learning how to think," WHILE simultaneously building a resume and connections, the case can be made more easily for things like journalism school. It sounds to me like the author focused too heavily on a belief in the intrinsic value of the journalism degree... why not launch your journalism career while in school?
SamAtt 17y ago
I don't think that has the impact that you think it does. I'm not saying I believe this now but the one of the first things I learned in life is that rich people will lie to you. They feel guilty about being where they are so they'll tell you that you can be like them when in fact they'll never really accept you. You're probably right. There are some poor people who work to send their kids to college thinking that it will solve all their kid's problems. But I think most know better and so I think a lot of that outreach falls on deaf ears. (Which incidentally isn't to say my parents didn't encourage me to go to college. Because much of society has set "having a degree" up as a litmus test for "is smart enough to have a career". But they made sure I knew enough to learn from my professors expertise while not adopting their flawed valued system)
- pw0ncakes 17y ago
  when in fact they'll never really accept you. This is why we need to get busy fixing society.

pw0ncakes 17y ago

People in the upper classes actually can follow their dreams, as can many people in the upper-middle. However, most people misuse these terms and consider themselves a class or two higher than they actually are. Upper class starts around $5 million per year and requires extensive family connections. It's probably less than 0.1% of the population. What a lot of people call "upper class" is upper-middle. What is usually called "upper-middle-class" is barely middle. Middle class (bourgeois) means that you can have 3 or 4 kids if you so desire (and afford an appropriate house in a big city), you have sufficient help and amenities not to need to do housework, you can send your kids to whatever schools they desire, and have sufficient connections that they can do pretty much whatever they want for work. Most people we consider middle-class are actually the high end of the proletariat-- working-class, not middle (but not "underclass" either). They do their own housework, can't afford to send their kids to the top schools, are fucked if their health insurer chooses not to cover an expensive treatment, and only can only vacation occasionally, and never for more than 2 weeks. Below that are the outright poors, who are probably the majority of American society. This society is pyramid shaped, despite peoples' desires to believe the contrary.

wallflower 17y ago
"When the heir to the Johnson & Johnson fortune makes a highly acclaimed documentary about being rich, his father’s unexpected feedback is what sticks with him the most. Jamie Johnson is a documentary filmmaker and the great-grandson of the founder of the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical company." http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast
yummyfajitas 17y ago
Below that are the outright poors, who are probably the majority of American society You should visit a country besides the US to discover what "poor" really means. The US poor are overfed and underworked; real poor people are not.
- pw0ncakes 17y ago
  The US poor have a lot of trinkets and junk food, but can't afford housing in any place worth living in, will go bankrupt if they have any health problems, have shitty jobs and no chance of advancement.