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It's not privilege, privilege makes it easier, but it's certainly not impossible without it - unless you count things like intelligence and personality to be pr

by Aloha 8y ago

It's not privilege, privilege makes it easier, but it's certainly not impossible without it - unless you count things like intelligence and personality to be privilege. That said, a certain subset of the population doesn't have the wherewithal, drive or ability to do it - and for an even smaller, the best in life they can hope for is to perform some sort of manual labor. We mustn't forget about the self selection bias of being smart - we tend to only socialize and know other smart people - meaning, don't fall into the fallacy of assuming you're the median.

AsyncAwait 8y ago
> It's not privilege, privilege makes it easier, but it's certainly not impossible without it. No, but it is much, much harder. Assuming all human beings are equal, how can you justify working a lot harder for the same outcome? As an example, we generally want to help the disabled, it is generally a good policy to remove barriers, install lifts etc. not for them to 'just learn to walk properly' or whatever.
- Aloha 8y ago
  > No, but it is much, much harder. Assuming all human beings are equal, how can you justify working a lot harder for the same outcome? I can't, that's my point we need to provide good opportunities for people of all abilities, not just for the smartest, we're failing at this goal. I want a more just and equitable society not necessarily just an equal one.
  - AsyncAwait 8y ago
    > I can't, that's my point we need to provide good opportunities for people of all abilities, not just for the smartest I agree, I was talking about affordability. You can be super smart, but if you're 2/3 as smart and also rich, you're still likely to do better in life than the smart, poor kid would.
    - Aloha 8y ago
      I'd agree, I believe poverty is at the root of most of our social ills, and we need to make a serious effort to solve it. We can do it while trying to solve the other social ills, but without solving poverty, we won't fix the other issues.

by Aloha 8y ago

AsyncAwait 8y ago

> It's not privilege, privilege makes it easier, but it's certainly not impossible without it. No, but it is much, much harder. Assuming all human beings are equal, how can you justify working a lot harder for the same outcome? As an example, we generally want to help the disabled, it is generally a good policy to remove barriers, install lifts etc. not for them to 'just learn to walk properly' or whatever.

Aloha 8y ago
> No, but it is much, much harder. Assuming all human beings are equal, how can you justify working a lot harder for the same outcome? I can't, that's my point we need to provide good opportunities for people of all abilities, not just for the smartest, we're failing at this goal. I want a more just and equitable society not necessarily just an equal one.
- AsyncAwait 8y ago
  > I can't, that's my point we need to provide good opportunities for people of all abilities, not just for the smartest I agree, I was talking about affordability. You can be super smart, but if you're 2/3 as smart and also rich, you're still likely to do better in life than the smart, poor kid would.
  - Aloha 8y ago
    I'd agree, I believe poverty is at the root of most of our social ills, and we need to make a serious effort to solve it. We can do it while trying to solve the other social ills, but without solving poverty, we won't fix the other issues.