4 ms·

I’ve been trying to watch all of the Oscar nominated movies before the academy awards. I’m down to the documentaries now, so I’m watching the documentary “Amer

I’ve been trying to watch all of the Oscar nominated movies before the academy awards. I’m down to the documentaries now, so I’m watching the documentary “American Factory” about a Chinese company that bought and refurbished an old GM plant in Ohio that had closed down. The camera crew followed around the Chinese workers and the American workers. The difference you see, over and over, is that the Chinese workers have this underlying belief that they are nothing by themselves and that they owe everything - their success, their focus, and even their lives - to the company and, by extension, the government/society. This results in factory workers who work 12-hour shifts, 28 days a month, forbidden to joke around with one another, and still praise their good fortune to be there. If you look back over the history of the Chinese cultural revolution, it started with this mantra: “you accomplished nothing. Society accomplished it and you were there.”

boomboomsubban 7y ago
>If you look back over the history of the Chinese cultural revolution, it started with this mantra: “you accomplished nothing. Society accomplished it and you were there.” It started with "let's purge our enemies," but the Chinese state has pushed the success of the society over the individual for millennia now.
WC3w6pXxgGd 7y ago
Collectivism is of course an incorrect ideology. I do want to point out that "American Factory" also shows the destructive nature of American collectivism (in the form of unionization). The mentality of "I exist so I should be taken care of by my employer" is unrealistic, and the lack of appreciation for the opportunities being provided are an insidious trend that occurs amongst privileged individuals who lack an understanding of how their privilege was created.
wwweston 7y ago
It seems like there might be happy medium between the idea that your accomplishments are insignificant and the idea that you're a Ayn Rand action figure. Maybe most citizens of 1st world nation states are beneficiaries of an incredible network of mutual support we call society and stand on the shoulders of many who came before... and yet deserve some recognition and reward for individual effort.
- AstralStorm 7y ago
  A lot of our "accomplishments" are indeed meaningless even when averaged into a society. A few are important, such as healthcare. The ultimate drivers are politics and high technology (research) to which the common person has no access. (Even academia is limited.) The top half percent does. Being recognized for being average sounds like a participation award or paraolympics. It's insulting to those who are not and are pushing state of the art. Let's face it, the worth of an average life is low because it is really readily replaceable and not in short supply. Some number of average folk is necessary to run economy that the actually important few can push everyone forward - which they sadly lately do not do often, instead exploiting their privileged position. Instead of building laboratories and schools we build factories to produce literal garbage and waste the environment... Shops to sell the aforementioned garbage so that someone can profit. Create circular service jobs so that more people can afford services, and especially get rich off it, not create opportunities for advancement and betterment. Etc. Selfishness is everywhere.

boomboomsubban 7y ago

>If you look back over the history of the Chinese cultural revolution, it started with this mantra: “you accomplished nothing. Society accomplished it and you were there.” It started with "let's purge our enemies," but the Chinese state has pushed the success of the society over the individual for millennia now.

WC3w6pXxgGd 7y ago

Collectivism is of course an incorrect ideology. I do want to point out that "American Factory" also shows the destructive nature of American collectivism (in the form of unionization). The mentality of "I exist so I should be taken care of by my employer" is unrealistic, and the lack of appreciation for the opportunities being provided are an insidious trend that occurs amongst privileged individuals who lack an understanding of how their privilege was created.

wwweston 7y ago

It seems like there might be happy medium between the idea that your accomplishments are insignificant and the idea that you're a Ayn Rand action figure. Maybe most citizens of 1st world nation states are beneficiaries of an incredible network of mutual support we call society and stand on the shoulders of many who came before... and yet deserve some recognition and reward for individual effort.

AstralStorm 7y ago
A lot of our "accomplishments" are indeed meaningless even when averaged into a society. A few are important, such as healthcare. The ultimate drivers are politics and high technology (research) to which the common person has no access. (Even academia is limited.) The top half percent does. Being recognized for being average sounds like a participation award or paraolympics. It's insulting to those who are not and are pushing state of the art. Let's face it, the worth of an average life is low because it is really readily replaceable and not in short supply. Some number of average folk is necessary to run economy that the actually important few can push everyone forward - which they sadly lately do not do often, instead exploiting their privileged position. Instead of building laboratories and schools we build factories to produce literal garbage and waste the environment... Shops to sell the aforementioned garbage so that someone can profit. Create circular service jobs so that more people can afford services, and especially get rich off it, not create opportunities for advancement and betterment. Etc. Selfishness is everywhere.