A bite on the Middle-Class Crunch 24.01.
This is an article I found quite interesting on MSN; http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/LearnToBudget/TheSecretToSuccessInTheMiddleClass.aspx
It is about how the middle class is apparently disappearing; I interpret it as there are those who choose to succeed, and have the proper resources available/are able to acquire them; and those who choose to fail, or else succeed and are unsuccessful at obtaining the required resources, or unaware of which to obtain.
Either way you look at it, it is more than just a biased statement. I mean, there are those who’s whole lives’ depend on other people’s tax money and the federal/state minimum wage regulations, and those who either were born with the riches/career path, or else accumulated it and no longer need intervention, yet must continue to support the former bunch by contributing taxes, etc.
The mentality of the two opposing views on this issue are both clear to me. Having lived my whole life earning everything I’ve ever wanted, and having to go hungry just to buy my first car, I understand the middle-class perspective. However, being somewhat lazy in looking for a part-time job while attending full-time college (I tried this before, working part-time with college full time, didn’t work out), I can understand the “economically stable and self-sufficient” crowd’s pessimism towards those less fortunate. I despise my current situation, and if I were to complain to someone of a higher level of my hating it, I would expect nothing more than being ignored, and perhaps chided for my lack of decency, laziness, or pessimism.
However, to the issue itself, I have noticed over the past decade how, unfortunately, it is getting harder for those who are at the bottom wrung to survive, let alone enjoy their own lives. This also overflows into other factors, such as violent crime; the poor kill the poor. Same thing for drugs and other illegal trades; a easy way to make a quick buck off of an illegal institution is very comely and welcome to someone who is already bellow the chart of economical standard.
So what can we do? Income tax is a cop-out in my opinion. Raising minimum wage only causes deflation of the value of the American dollar in the long run. There are a few ways to lower the standard of living, but those are typically out of the question. Nothing is free, TINSTASFL. No one wants to reach out if there isn’t something in it for them, the thought of being generous and good-natured included. Mankind as a developing entity, is very selfish. However, there are those who can evolve mentally and philosophically. It doesn’t have to happen once financial stability is reached, it can happen at the poverty level; just look at Gandhi. However, at the level of financial security, there are role models such as Opera. Mankind has tried tangible, secular, and legal approaches to solving the problem of distribution of wealth, however it has shone very little light into the region of ethics and morals, it would seem. Sure, there are plenty of debates. But just look at this one little word; simpatico. There is no English adaptation or translation for this word, and such is very accurate in that very fact. If it were to be translated, it would be a visionary word, an irrelevant utopia-bound wish. The dictionary (dotcom) site’s definition is so inaccurate. It claims that it means “like-minded”. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/simpatico) It couldn’t be more wrong. What it means, in context of it’s people’s culture, is “displaying qualities of a good nature, being friendly, caring, helpful”; having a do-good character.
Think about that for a second. I don’t want to become to idealist with my argument, because I don’t see this ever becoming possible in America so long as we gripe and moan about “recession” while complaining doesn’t help anything. If you look at media, there is no wonder we are as we are. The media defines us. And we define it. So there you have it. Whoever controls your source of media, controls you. It is up to them to offer you fulfilling good, and up to you to seek that out. This is my solution to the problem, though not just a bit farfetched. Mudvane once said, “turn off the radio, turn off the tv”. I don’t follow that, I’d say “keep your mind open and don’t believe everything you hear; question it”. We are blessed with minds, and I consider them as hard drives; we fill them up with all the shit we see and hear, but in the end, if we don’t sort that out, we’re bound to get some viruses and malware. Doesn’t matter what programs you watch or use to filter it, because those too are biased. It’s up to YOU to decide, it’s up to YOU to get involved in sorting out the good from bad, the truth from lies, the wrong from right, the fact from opinion. Gathering all the information you can find and sustain is pointless if you fail to sort and organize it.
To hit on one last point, I know the media is blamed constantly. That in itself is a sedative. It simply casts a shroud for a few minutes after hearing it the first few times, and then settles down at the back of your mind like a time bomb set to detonate whenever someone validates that a previous “fact” sustained by the media is proved wrong (sometimes inevitably) at a later time. This generation is not without ambition, but it is not without laziness either. Shortcuts are taken, entertainments are indulged and confused with standardized fact. Time and thus money are wasted. This is the worst part; some who would wish to be successful throw away all else; I know about 40 kids my age (more or less) who claim to be going into nursing; when questioned by myself, they slowly begin to question their career path. What is worse is those who don’t, who choose it, knowing they’d rather do something else, that might net a whopping 6-10 grand less a year, but they’d enjoy more. In this mindset, we are flooding (more like spamming) people who hate their jobs prematurely into fields they don’t like or couldn’t care less for. Look at politicians. They talk as experts on things they don’t have a bachelors degree (let alone PHD) in, and are widely accepted as genuine and professional. We are so much creatures of conformity, we have pulled the wool over our eyes. I will wrap this up, but I will have to post on the relevance of the Ionian Enchantment tying in here at a later time.
In sum, the Middle Class true is slipping. There will soon be no room for middle men, those most needed in a world of gradually worse extremes between the rich and poor. I have grasped this much. It cannot be denied, outsourcing can only last so long. Soon China will mushroom, and they will be the world’s leading middle class. It is inevitable. What will happen then is America’s middle class will be wiped off the map. We will have the uber-rich, and the depressingly poor. Of course, then we can just find cheap labor within our own nation. And thus the spiral will continue eternal. It’s time to wake up America. This is how I see things in my current state, but I leave it up to everyone to debate…
-Cooltrainer Josh
www.myspace.com/kei_centillion
“I’m a falling stone in a world of glass…”