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These silly “American bad Europe good” comments always find their way into these discussions, and they are as uninsightful as “if you aren’t the customer you’re
by blhack 7y ago
These silly “American bad Europe good” comments always find their way into these discussions, and they are as uninsightful as “if you aren’t the customer you’re the product!”.
An equally uncharitable interpretation is: American culture, unlike European, places incredible value on personal agency. We ask each other “what do you do” because we actually have the socially enforced freedom to choose what the answer to the question is. It’s always shocked me how little freedom Europeans have in choosing the course of their own lives. You can see this playing out when they don’t even bother to ask each other what they do for a living (it’s a taboo to ask because most Europeans hate their jobs).
This, of course, is absurd. People all over the world ask each other what they do because it’s useful information to know how somebody spends their time, and may provide additional conversation topics.
- jxub 7y agoInteresting double take on the situation
- bluntfang 7y ago>We ask each other “what do you do” because we actually have the socially enforced freedom to choose what the answer to the question is. No we don't, or at least most people don't. People of disenfranchised communities don't choose to not go to college or get a job in software development. This makes up most people.
- dx87 7y agoSaying that if people had a choice they'd go to college or get a job as a software developer is quite an assumption. There's nothing wrong with wanting to go to do something like a trade school. I've got some younger cousins that are earning the same amount as apprentice electricians as my wife with a masters degree.
- bluntfang 7y agoThis is a strawman. Disenfranchised communities don't have a choice to go to a trade school either. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycle_of_poverty https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycle_of_poverty
- vonmoltke 7y agoWhat is your definition of "disenfranchised community" such that it covers most people?
- ameister14 7y agoYou mean felons? That's the only disenfranchised community in the US
- kinkrtyavimoodh 7y agoThey're worse than “if you aren’t the customer you’re the product!”. The latter at least is true in some sense.
- chupa-chups 7y agoThis is simply bs, sorry for being blunt. When you're conversing, sooner or later the topic will switch to professions. And there is no taboo in this area. Asking a stranger about his occupation (esp. if the answer could be - judging by circumstances, appearance or whatever - that she/he has not been as lucky as you regarding jobs/skills) is considered impolite though.
- danielscrubs 7y agoWhat have you been smoking? We get paid to go to university and it’s free. https://www.epi.org/publication/usa-lags-peer-countries-mobility/ https://www.epi.org/publication/usa-lags-peer-countries-mobi... And it’s never rude to ask what kind of work you do.