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On some level you almost want to say "duh.", but having grown up in a very lower-middle class household and being on the high side of middle class now, the diff
by empath75 7y ago
On some level you almost want to say "duh.", but having grown up in a very lower-middle class household and being on the high side of middle class now, the difference in how I was raised and how my kids are being raised is fairly vast. I'm sometimes jealous of how easy my kids have it compared to me, to be honest. I can only imagine where i'd be now if I had parents who were able to provide the resources that I can give to my kids, in terms of connections and education.
- wonderwonder 7y agoabsolutely, same boat. I have to think that my kids just not having to listen to their parents constantly fight about money like I did has to go a long way. Going to the store with friends and your parents have to pay with food stamps carries a certain stigma. I had good parents who always worked hard (not necessarily smart) and did the best they could for us, so I have no other complaints but I was definitely very aware of being poor.
- tropo 7y agoFighting over money is because of personality and disagreement, not the amount of money. You can fight at any level of wealth. For the rich, spouses can fight over the choice between buying a pro sports team and buying a private island, or between buying a customized 747-8 and buying a made-to-order yacht with helipad. For the poor, spouses can be in full agreement that dinner is soup made with ketchup packets, slugs, and dandelions.
- wonderwonder 7y agoIf you think that a couple arguing over which sports team to buy is the same as arguing in frustration over how to make rent is the same, you are incorrect. Stress leads to arguments and people not being at their best; there are few things more stressful than not having the funds for basic necessities. The solution is not for the poor to eat slugs...
- lopmotr 7y agoWhy were they fighting if they were good parents? My parents were poor but didn't fight. They just didn't buy much and they both accepted that and tried hard to improve things.
- ben_w 7y ago“Fighting” can cover a large range of actions, from arguing to violence. If it’s the former, I can understand — e.g. frustration from a personality difference where one of them wanted to spend money on something nice so that life wasn’t just an endless pointless slog of dull grey, while the other wanted to save the money for an emergency.
- wonderwonder 7y agoIs your comment really that because my parents argued about money they were bad parents?
- ohyeshedid 7y agoYour parents likely fought more than you'd be aware of, in the argumentative sense. Unless you're trying to claim you were raised in the first household in history with absolutely no conflict? Your binary viewpoints belie the superiority you're projecting.
- mc32 7y agoI agree with you but it’s more complicated. Not all kids want to grow up and be something. There used to be an avenue (future) for those kids. I don’t think that exists much any more. What I mean is a blue collar family could provide enough to produce another content blue collar worker. If you graduated high school today to be a content blue collar worker your options are kind of limited. I think some of this structural reality results in the appeal of Bernie to many young voters.
- Mikeb85 7y agoYup. Both Bernie and Trump came up because of a dissatisfaction with the status quo amongst blue collar workers (Trump's slogan definitely conjures up images of a time when blue collar workers had relatively comfortable lives).
- rb808 7y agoI see so many kids with high school grades are completely useless as at life. I wonder which is worse.