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There was some other comment about how objectively good things are right now and how good the future looks for most of the world(humans, not environment) and it

There was some other comment about how objectively good things are right now and how good the future looks for most of the world(humans, not environment) and it makes me wonder if somehow the better things are the worse things get since wealth is still so unevenly distributed. With all the talk about work-life balance and the great resignation and worker power, I have to imagine that maybe 50 years ago if you were poor you had a better sense that there was no way out, but as your situation improves you get more hope that you become middle class and more frustrated when you don't achieve it. Which is all to say that if executives are inspired to move to four day work weeks and better work-life balance, will this trickle down to blue collar/minimum wage jobs (i.e. Musk advocating for 9-9-6)

hedora 4y ago
Economic mobility in the US is much lower than it was 50 years ago, and food riots are common elsewhere this year. Climate change projections say that we're headed to economic collapse.
airstrike 4y ago
Nothing meaningful will trickle down to blue collar / minimum wage jobs from these types of "changes" because capital gains taxes are much lower than income taxes. If you 80-20 the issue of inequality, this is what you should spend most of the time discussing. The fact that many can afford to let money sit in the bank earning virtually risk-free ~7-8% year (~3% for "true" risk free) and pay ~20% on those gains instead of the fucking 42% of our income some of us pay in places like NYC is where this is really at Increasing capital gains taxes would have obvious meaningful implications for financial markets, so the debate really should be about what's the lesser of two evils here: reducing inequality or reducing the strength of the US financial market. You decide.
- Tarsul 4y ago
  Thank you for saying this so eloquently. It's a sad state where this elephant in the room isn't talked or acknowledged really. Well, ok, it's politically "unfeasable" but still if we don't even acknowledge it, nothing real will change. The other elephant in the room that no one talks about is that housing shouldn't be that much of a problem in a country where the population is not growing (but it is because it is used as an asset although it should be for living not for wealth growth, thus having 2nd or 3rd homes should be massively discouraged through taxes).
andsoitis 4y ago
The more senior you are, the more responsibility you have. Responsibility doesn’t keep office hours. The CEO and other senior executives cannot say to shareholders that they had a bad day, were sick, wanted to spend more time with their family and expect that shareholders won’t look for someone who they perceive can work harder for them.
- hn_version_0023 4y ago
  You've articulated the problem well: placing shareholder value above all else is at the root of what ails corporate America. Other values need a seat at the table, not just scraps from the shareholders.
  - andsoitis 4y ago
    I don’t know what the right balance is, but it is worth noting that institutional investors (incl. pension funds, insurance funds, ETFs, etc.), hold 80% of equity. So, broadly speaking, if you’re a worker, you very very likely have a stake in companies generally being profitable. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/financial-theory/11/introduction-institutional-investing.asp https://www.investopedia.com/articles/financial-theory/11/in...
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]

hedora 4y ago

Economic mobility in the US is much lower than it was 50 years ago, and food riots are common elsewhere this year. Climate change projections say that we're headed to economic collapse.

airstrike 4y ago

Nothing meaningful will trickle down to blue collar / minimum wage jobs from these types of "changes" because capital gains taxes are much lower than income taxes. If you 80-20 the issue of inequality, this is what you should spend most of the time discussing. The fact that many can afford to let money sit in the bank earning virtually risk-free ~7-8% year (~3% for "true" risk free) and pay ~20% on those gains instead of the fucking 42% of our income some of us pay in places like NYC is where this is really at Increasing capital gains taxes would have obvious meaningful implications for financial markets, so the debate really should be about what's the lesser of two evils here: reducing inequality or reducing the strength of the US financial market. You decide.

Tarsul 4y ago
Thank you for saying this so eloquently. It's a sad state where this elephant in the room isn't talked or acknowledged really. Well, ok, it's politically "unfeasable" but still if we don't even acknowledge it, nothing real will change. The other elephant in the room that no one talks about is that housing shouldn't be that much of a problem in a country where the population is not growing (but it is because it is used as an asset although it should be for living not for wealth growth, thus having 2nd or 3rd homes should be massively discouraged through taxes).

andsoitis 4y ago

The more senior you are, the more responsibility you have. Responsibility doesn’t keep office hours. The CEO and other senior executives cannot say to shareholders that they had a bad day, were sick, wanted to spend more time with their family and expect that shareholders won’t look for someone who they perceive can work harder for them.

hn_version_0023 4y ago
You've articulated the problem well: placing shareholder value above all else is at the root of what ails corporate America. Other values need a seat at the table, not just scraps from the shareholders.
- andsoitis 4y ago
  I don’t know what the right balance is, but it is worth noting that institutional investors (incl. pension funds, insurance funds, ETFs, etc.), hold 80% of equity. So, broadly speaking, if you’re a worker, you very very likely have a stake in companies generally being profitable. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/financial-theory/11/introduction-institutional-investing.asp https://www.investopedia.com/articles/financial-theory/11/in...
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]