Anyone else thinks as young man you are playing life on "Hard Mode"

59 comments

• Omega_Entertainment

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  2 years ago

  90% of todays college students are taking majors that have zero career paths. Liberal Art degrees should only be offered as minors and make students actually learn a profitable skillset, no matter that they dream to be a museum curator for Roman Philosphy while in Drag. First year in college should have more aptitude tests to weed out the ones who simply gamed the system to "go to college".
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  Most people in college have been seriously misled as to what career doors are being opened for them, and this does not depend on what major they select. SJG
• mike710

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  2 years ago

  There's no rule that says amount of education you have sets what you should be paid. If you want to be paid well, you should study a marketable skill. I did get my degree in a marketable field but didn't have an expectation to start at the top of my profession. It was several years of making a reasonable salary at a lower level before I received a promotion and paid off my college debt. After several years, I quit living paycheck to paycheck. It was maybe 7 or 8 years before I started paying off credit cards every month. Someone can't come out of college expecting a top salary to live the life of the rich and famous. College just gives you tools to success. It's several years before you have practical skills in any profession.
• nicespice

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  2 years ago

  Youth is correlated with a higher sex drive—so I’m sure one would be hard more often 😎
• shailynn

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  2 years ago

  Hard like a 3 day old Olive Garden breadstick
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  What you are describing is harder and more constrained financial times than any reasonable person would expect. Costs too high, too many bills having to be deferred. And there is still the issue that people are led to believe that they will be able to use their skills, when all to often the find that they have been reduced to merely job seekers. SJG
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  ^^^ I was replying to mike710. SJG
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  I got a bachelor's in a hard science from a top undergrad institution, and my dad told me my first job out of school was going to be sweeping floors (metaphorically). I worked a couple years at that before parlaying that, and nighttime business coursework and a major professional certification, into a _much_ more lucrative opportunity. I got lucky, but I busted my ass to get into that position. I don't have sympathy for anyone who goes into loan debt for a crap degree. You were of legal age, and entered into a binding contract. Just because you received shitty advice doesn't absolve you. Most of us received plenty of shitty advice that we acted on at our own peril, or ignored to our own benefit. There is no right to study what you want on someone else's nickel. Congress cannot "cancel" student loan debt, only offload it onto the American taxpayer. If it gets assumed, it should be assumed by the university that gave them the useless education, yet seems to build more amenities and hire more non-teaching staff. When my undergrad and grad schools with their giant endowments ask me for donations to "help educate the next generation," I cackle and feed it into my paper shredder. It's like Jeff Bezos asking me to fund his 401(k).
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  College loan is stupid, but people are conned into it. We need a very much different kind of higher education. Everyone should be entitled to college, and to study what they want, and we should not be looking at it as being on someone else's nickel or as some kind of a social debt to be repaid. And college loan debt should be off loaded on to higher upper income tax payers and finding ways to make the lenders eat some of it. The most useful education is that which most resonates with the student. SJG
• Icee Loco (asshole)

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  2 years ago

  The economy is fucked up and unsustainable. The only jobs out there for most are low paying and there aren't enough full time career paths.the system needs major changes. As is the private sector wants slaves willing to do anything for as little as possible Telling people to be doctors or nuclear engineers instead is being completely out of touch with reality.
• Biseggi

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  2 years ago

  You just need to be the all real Italian meal!! You need to be the king of the all sting. Biseggi knows em all!! Need a lil bounce in the all step. A lil jewelry - some nice rings an all. Maybe some nice wingtps and a tailoreded suit. Ain’t nobody stoppin u then !! Not even my boy Snerzy and lemme tell ya he’d be easy to stop no offense Snerzy
• mark94

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  2 years ago

  Every major employer has categories of jobs where they are desperate to hire. Many of these jobs are related to STEM and require a college degree. However, there are also good paying jobs requiring a 2 year vocational degree. Or, there are good paying jobs in the trades. Or, there are good paying sales jobs that require hustle. All you need to reach the American Dream is to be smart enough to pick one of these career paths, put in a solid 40 hours a week, and live within your means as your income grows. Do that, and you are pretty much guaranteed a good life. That’s not asking too much. Or, you can make a stupid career choice, get pissed off, live beyond your means, and blame everyone but yourself.
• mark94

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  2 years ago

  Here is how a career path works for most successful people. - Work a crummy minimum wage job while pursuing an education that prepared you for a job in demand - take a first full time job that pays just enough to get by - use what you learned in the first job to get second better paying job - get married, buy a house, live on a budget, set aside some money for the future - see your financial situation improve every decade - retire comfortably Here is how angry, entitled people live their life - go to college and study something easy and fun - rely on student loans - get a job that pays half what you think you deserve - get angry at your employer for not appreciating how valuable you are - quit, take some time off, then take another random job - quit, take time off, take another random job - spend your free time on social media explaining how unfair the world is
• skibum609

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  2 years ago

  Things haven't changed for the young, just perception and weakness. My first legal job in 1982 paid $600.00 a week. Interest rate on loans was 9%• lived like shit, which we all expected because there was no internet so we lived in the real world.
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  "Everyone should be entitled to college, and to study what they want, and we should not be looking at it as being on someone else's nickel or as some kind of a social debt to be repaid." That's your ungrounded opinion. Find me the constitutional right to 4 years of partying and studying for self-edification on the taxpayer nickel; it's a luxury we could never afford at our peak. "Telling people to be doctors or nuclear engineers instead is being completely out of touch with reality." Telling people your medieval French poetry degree is as valuable as an electrical engineering degree is out of touch with reality. There are plenty of career paths for those without the brains to be doctors or nuclear engineers--a welder or electrician can make bank right out of high school.
• skibum609

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  2 years ago

  I have a history degree and it served me well.
• Beat100

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  2 years ago

  @heaving What is wrong with specifying the gender? I thought it would be the normal thing to do since I am not putting women in the bag. I'm not "talking on their behalf." Just wanting to bring light of a situation.
• rockie

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  2 years ago

  I'll play this game. I joined the work force in 1981 earning a whopping $320 per week after my college graduation. Rent was $300 a month in that year and I had a room mate. I had no student debt, as tuition at a good local college was only 4% of my Dad's rather stealth earnings in my college years. I barely saved a nickel in my first five years out of school! Buying a condo with a minimum down payment, and paying the piper on a mortgage to the nasty tune of 18% for 7 years was not the joy ride of home ownership that we perceived going in. Not being able to refinance due to an archaic 90% owner occupancy law (at the time) and subsequently seeing the value of our first home decline 38% was the kick in the balls that every owner pursues. It only took a failure to recognize 50% of our income for 28 years to overcome the missteps of the first 13 years after graduation and view retirement as an option! What's different today? Well doesn't everyone earn the 1.6 million dollars annually that would have my Dad paying as we go to that same local university today? And even at a mortgage of 5%, the cost of home ownership is a higher hurdle than it was once! Tetra: You Dad's perspective on a college degree was the right view to share with you! We didn't kill our children's dreams (while pursuing their degrees), but their degrees and other course work were grounded in the fundamentals that serve them well in business today. Our children's degrees cost us 7.5% of our earnings (on average) in their college years! My alma mater would have been an "unnecessary" 12% kick in the balls (per child) 10 years ago!
• rockie

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  2 years ago

  One modification to my diatribe - "view retirement as" a comfortable option even in these fiscal times.
• gammanu95

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  2 years ago

  No, it's a mostly level playing field. Experience and on the job skills and knowledge make you a more valuable employee; however you have to work in the field to gain the experience, knowledge, and skills. It only makes sense that you start in an entry-level position which is less valuable which means lower pay. As far as wealth-building goes, entry-level comes into play again. You have to buy a used or base model vehicle to begin. Then, you trade it in for the best value you can to upgrade. Then you trade in the upgrade for an even better upgrade. Used Ford Ranger to new Ford Ranger to new F-150. Homes are the same way. Rent at first while you save, then buy 2/1 condo. Sell the 2/1 and buy a 3/2 on a 1/4 acre. Then sell the 3/2 and buy a 5/6 on an acre with a pool and spa. I remember the benchmarks for my discretionary spending. First I paid off my student loans, so I went out more with friends and to nicer clubs. Then I paid off my truck. I started buying nicer clothes at Carson Pirie Scott and Macy's. Then I paid off all of my outstanding credit card and got a higher-paying job. Now I bought my clothes at designer stores, went out to find dining on dates, and bought furniture sets instead of individual pieces. Wealth building and career progression is something everyone has to go through. Admittedly, the children of high-level politicians and business executives have access to subsidies and opportunities that most others do not; but you can still build a very nice life for yourself and achieve the American dream if you work hard and plan wisely. Until the democrat party and communists fuck everything up.
• gammanu95

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  2 years ago

  @Tetradon: "my dad told me my first job out of school was going to be sweeping floors (metaphorically)." My Dad's euphemism was "'How to Succeed in Business'. Chapter One: Get a job in the mail room. There is always a job in the mail room. Chapter Two: Get the hell out of the mail room!"
• twentyfive

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  2 years ago

  No one is entitled to anything, that's why smart young people train for something that pays well, once you become successful, you can pretty much follow your hearts desires. Best advice for young people I ever heard came from Warren Buffet, find something to do that you love, you'll never work a day of your life Most of the people I know that enjoy their life, are capable of paying their own way.
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  @rockie and @gamma, I got lucky in that I was born smart AF, and was raised middle to upper-middle class with parents who socked away a lot for my tuition. In the fable of the grasshopper and the ants, I'm an ant from a proud family of ants. But I also chose the school that gave the best aid package, busted my ass applying for scholarships, and worked the dining halls and tutoring classmates, such that I graduated with minimal debt. I also majored in a hard science, took courses in economics and business, and pursued the less work-friendly interests off-hours. I think my love of writing (fiction and non) would be spoiled if I had to submit it for a grade. Lots of my classmates went on to I-banking or big consulting firms, and made $100,000 coming right out of school in the early 2000s (when it was big money, especially for a 22 year old), but that was rare. Yes, at my big name school a lot of people got those jobs because of Mommy or Daddy's big name, but that's life and there's no use bitching about it. The right name always opens doors--do you think Chelsea Clinton would have gotten her $600,000 NBC sinecure, or Hunter Biden would get away with smoking crack and jerking off in the presence of hookers if their last names were Jones? It's life. Losers fixate and ruminate. They cry "not fair!" and "it shouldn't be this way!" In fact, I've noticed that use of words like "fair" and "should" are highly inversely correlated to one's success and happiness in life. Winners might not be happy about it, but they know what they can and can't change in the world. In fact again, when people on this board give advice, I would ask the recipient to consider the advice-giver. If said giver lives a fucked up life, why listen to them?
• iknowbetter

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  2 years ago

  I did not read all the comments, but to the OPs point. Yes, money makes life easier. Unfortunately if you were not blessed by being born into money, you have to earn it on your own. And if you’re just starting out in your career, you are never going to be making enough. I said the same things when I first got out of college, including “times are harder these days”, and “real estate has gotten unaffordable”, and all the other things you are saying. The only difference between 30 years ago and today is that the lifestyle expectations were much lower, and no one expected mom or dad or the government to bail you out. You had to figure it out on your own - or not. Yes, life is hard on a young man. Always has been, always will be.
• Beat100

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  2 years ago

  @iknowbetter Great advice. What I'm getting at is that I slowly realized that with the money I'm making my life is getting slightly easier. Note that last year I worked at a job that paid me much less. But now I'm working for a larger business. It's not the job that is hard. But rather how things are set up. How if you are an entry level beginner your boss wants to book you less hours.
• rockie

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  2 years ago

  The most unconscionable money that I've seen contemporaries misspend is on "name brand" colleges, and it's cost to their financial ability to withstand the impact of a blind mistake repeatedly!
• MackTruck

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  2 years ago

  I a one HARD mofo! I da Kang of da trollz
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  People get conned into college loans. They maybe of legal age, but they are being sold something my misrepresentation. And Mark94, the American Dream has long been out of reach for a majority of Americans, even college graduates. And like Van Jones said, college and homeownership used to be the gateways to the middle class. But now they have been turned into the trap door to financial collapse. I agree with what Icey has said on this thread. And Tetradon, you talk about 4 years of science. Well if those classes has people in them who think the way you do, they must not have been very good classes, because you are only thinking about future income. You are talking about classes with Strivers and FratBoys, approval seekers. Good people get tracked into those sorts of classes. Science does not work that way. SJG Jane - School of Rock [view link]
• iknowbetter

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  2 years ago

  @Beat - This is definitely not the place to go for career or financial advice, but you sound sincere so I will give you a sincere answer. If you have an entry level job that you like well enough, and it pays well, but your boss is not booking you enough hours, I’d hang in there until you get marketable experience that you can parlay into a promotion, or into a better job elsewhere. In the meantime don’t be ashamed of supplementing your income with work that might be considered demeaning - Uber driver, delivering pizzas, doing freelance computer work, etc. When I was fresh out of college, I cut lawns in my neighborhood on weekends. People thought it was odd that someone with an MBA was cutting their grass, but the extra $150-$200 per week made a big difference. Similarly, be willing to live in a shitty neighborhood with roommates. Even at today’s inflated prices, the price of real estate only goes up, and if you are smart (lucky) enough to pick the right shitty neighborhood that is becoming gentrified (anywhere near a big city), then you can start the cycle of rolling up real estate equity to eventually get you into the neighborhood you deserve. But for now, the key is to live within your means, and that might mean a pretty sparse existence for awhile. And STAY OUT OF STRIP CLUBS! This is a very expensive hobby for those who can afford it.
• Icee Loco (asshole)

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  2 years ago

  This thread shows how out of touch with today's reality many of you are.
• twentyfive

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  2 years ago

  ^ no son, it merely shows how narcissistic and selfish you are, imagine that, the world owes you a living SMH
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  @SJG, you know what else people get conned into? Jobs that aren't an optimal fit, buying the wrong car/house, buying a piece of furniture they couldn't afford, buying Mary Kay or Amway products, marrying the wrong person, not marrying the right person, giving $100 to that televangelist, trying that first hit of heroin. Why aren't we bailing them out of their crap decisions too? College is not magical or privileged in that regard. It's yet another decision entered into with full aforethought. There aren't enough rich people to backstop every bad decision. I'll give you one thing, we've pumped the real estate market incredibly hard. It's been bipartisan, with boomers in particular not wanting to lose value on their investments, and voting against any affordable housing, for low ass interest rates, etc. Truth is there are two sides to every transaction and it'll take a housing crash for a lot of people to be able to get in. As far as 4 years of science, you don't know me, son. I'll be a bigger man than you and not make some threat about a privacy wall; you'll never learn anything about me I don't want you to, so threats about things that'll never happen are silly. I loved science, still do, just didn't want to spend my professional life in a white coat (in a hospital or a lab). Money, beyond "can I support myself with reasonable comfort," didn't play a role. But anyone who _doesn't_ ask "can I support myself with this degree" is a fucking moron. You act like you're entitled to a comfortable life just for existing--this is utter nonsense that, if everyone believed, would collapse society within days. Don't know why you're telling me how science works anyways. Frat Boys don't major in hard sciences. They major in soft stuff and spend weekends in the Hamptons. I barely saw them, since we lived parallel existences. They weren't horrible people, just ignorant of people who didn't have hired help to clean their houses. Strivers? I was a minor-league one. Didn't see the point in going much further, I wanted to live my life rather than rule the world. Most of my "Striver" classmates are successful doctors or scientists. Great for them, they wanted that life and worked towards it. I don't begrudge people that worked hard and achieved. Only losers begrudge people the fruits of their labors. You sound very bitter towards them, like someone who wanted to be one and fucked up along the way. So now you denigrate them and want to bring everyone down to your level. Remember when I said, "when taking life advice, consider the source." I wouldn't swap lives you for all the pussy in every extras club in the world.
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  Tetradon, conning is there anytime there is misrepresentation. Such misrepresentation is prohibited by law. We want people to go to college because it is good for our society. But the results have often not been good. We need to correct this. We can't have college saddling people with debt, just to lower taxes for the rich. There are also laws about multi-level marketing, its just that they are hard to enforce because the MLM people are so completely taken in. [view link] Tetra, people who think like you do, judging only on future income, are not going to make for a good science program. Social Approval, this is the anathema of learning, and it is how Strivers and FratBoys think. Good people get conned into academic programs and occupations controlled by such. We are all already entitled, as we should be. FratBoys go into things that get them pats on the back. Am I bitter? Well I was slow to recognize the ways one has to be on guard against falling under the thumb of FratBoys and Strivers. But no I am not bitter. At this point they are the ones who are licking their wounds. SJG Jane - School of Rock [view link]
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  @SJG, it is your unsubstantiated opinion (see a theme here?) that people going to college is good for society. It takes away 4 years that could be spent traveling the world or learning a valuable trade, and pumps money into the pocket of universities whose tuition costs outstrip cost of living by a mile. Back when it was a ticket to a good life, only a small number of people went. Now, college degrees are common and devalued. Soon it will be like business school, where anything less than a top school is a waste of time and money. If you aren't taking 4 prime earning years and paying $250,000 with an eye towards future income, you are an idiot. You are paying _money_, and have to pay back that _money_. Better have a plan to do so. Not all bad advice is fraud. "College is the ticket to a good life" is an aphorism. If it's perpetuated by anyone, it's the universities which have grown fat off of it, and well-meaning parents and teachers for whom it was true in their youth. Yes, you are bitter. Strivers rule the world. Strivers cure diseases, become senators and justices, run anything from a successful construction firm to an investment bank. Strivers come to this country, the 8th child of a single mother, and bust their asses to succeed. By comparison, you're a what? Non-striver? 30+ hour a week TUSCL-er? FRMOS fantasizer? Privacy wall threatener?
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  "@SJG, it is your unsubstantiated opinion (see a theme here?) that people going to college is good for society. It takes away 4 years that could be spent traveling the world or learning a valuable trade, and pumps money into the pocket of universities whose tuition costs outstrip cost of living by a mile. " First of all, that is the decision to make for those who would do it. Going to college is not always better for everyone. Now the costs, I agree the costs have already become completely absurd, and this needs to be redressed. FWIW, the organization I am building will offer an alternative to conventional secondary education and the costs will be modest. We should not be putting public money into conventional universities without substantial reform. Anyone getting told they should take on debt or draw down a nest egg to go to college is being conned. We will not do that. We will always work with people to have some kind of pay as you go work study plan, and the costs will be very modest. Conventional college is mostly a con job. But people still need some kind of secondary education. Usually a mix of work and study is best. Stivers pack all kinds of schools and fields. They care little about what they would learn or what they would do. They only care about social conformity and approval. They don't bust their asses, they only work to get money to play and retire. They work so that they don't have to work anymore. I am just a guy with a privacy wall so that I don't have to get shoulder bruises from shot gunning so many trolls. SJG
• iknowbetter

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  2 years ago

  “This thread shows how out of touch with today's reality many of you are.” This is probably true. But you don’t hear me complaining about my reality.
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  Will the "organization" be staffed by unicorns or dragons? Because it's about as real as those.
• Icee Loco (asshole)

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  2 years ago

  25 you're saying society owes you a job for studying certain things and not others. Then say no one owes you a living. Make your senile mind up
• Icee Loco (asshole)

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  2 years ago

  Capitalism is a con
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  The Organization will be staffed by stripper grade hotties. But it has a very long way to go to get to that point. Capitalism has been a con from the very beginning, but since 1870 it has not worked at all. As such we have and to have major wars to sustain it. SJG
• twentyfive

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  2 years ago

  Icee It's very obvious to everyone here that you don't have good reading comprehension skills, just because you read on a second grade level, that doesn't make me senile, it just clarifies for the rest here, that you're an uneducated fool. If that's what you took away from my two posts you best go back and read what I wrote slowly so you have a chance to understand it better.
• CJKent_band

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  2 years ago

  The undeniable reality is that in the American influenced/dominated world economy of today: “It is the sufferings of the many which pay for the luxuries of the few.” ~ Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg ~ Born: 3rd January 2003 Stockholm, Sweden ~ Occupation: Student, environmental activist ~ Awards: ~ Fritt Ord Award (2019) ~ Rachel Carson Prize (2019) ~ Ambassador of Conscience Award (2019) ~ Right Livelihood Award (2019) ~ International Children's Peace Prize (2019) ~ Time Person of the Year (2019) ~ Gulbenkian Prize for Humanity (2020)
• crazyjoe

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  2 years ago

  ^ This mor9n has not been hard in decades
• skibum609

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  2 years ago

  CJ is a twat with unrequited sex fantasies about the ugly retard Greta. Capitalism works perfectly if you are smart and hard working. If you are stupid and lazy, you think it's a con. George Floyd thought it was a con. By the way Icee, how is felonious thug George doing?
• CJKent_band

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  2 years ago

  @skibum609 You know the so called Capitalism of America does not work for everyone; it benefits a few and leaves the rest to scramble for the scraps. Aside from increasing inequality, trying only to maximise profits encourages other problems too. It can lead businesses to pay workers as little as possible, even if that means workers remain in poverty and have unsafe working conditions. You live in denial of the fact that the so called Capitalism you defend was built and continues to be maintained by conquest, ecological ruin, slavery, state terrorism, sexism, racism, exploitation and immiseration in America and all over the world.
• skibum609

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  2 years ago

  You know CJ nothing on earth works for everyone and never has or will. Communism makes everyone but a minimal few a poverty stricken, abused prisoner and Communism's pussy little sister, socialism, does the same thing, except in rare occurrences where there is a capitalist country to leech off. If Europe paid for their own defense, their social safety net would look like a hula hoop. You can state all your inane trigger points, but as Winston Chruchill once noted: Capitalism is a horrible system, but unfortunately, by far the best we have. In fact, as America becomes more of the socialistic heaven you want, we fall further and further down the shithole. The worst countries on earth are not capitalist countries and your whining doesn't change that. To be fair, if I was a useless loser, I too would want to live off the efforts of others.
• gammanu95

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  2 years ago

  There seems to be a pretty common thread through these threads, and in life off the boards. Democrat voters, lefties, and libs all complain that everything is too hard, life isn't working out like they thought it would, and society and the government owe them handouts and freebies to offset their professional failures and personal failings. Republicans, conservatives, and their ilk are generally content with their situation, accept the world as it is, adapt to it, and overcome, and respect those who work hard succeed through grit and ingenuity. Just coincidentally, those latter traits are defined by CRT, BLM, and other racebaiters as symptoms of "Whiteness." It's true, look it up. Being happy, working hard, and succeeding in spite of adversity is bad and "White." LOL
• skibum609

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  2 years ago

  Let's not forget that at the African American section of the Smithsonian they were claiming that an aspect of white supremacy was "rational linear thinking". My guess is that everyone, regardless of race, benefits from rational linear thinking.
• iknowbetter

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  2 years ago

  @ Gamma - you are absolutely correct on all points except that I don’t know if it’s a democrat vs republican thing as much as it is the age old haves vs have nots. I am one who fits your description of conservative (content with how things are, able to adapt and succeed, etc.), yet I identify with the Democratic Party (pro choice, pro LGBTQ rights, pro gun control, pro alternative fuels, etc). And I also make no apology for being white. I just happened to have been born that way. And white privilege does exist. It’s not right, but it exists. I’ve seen it and benefitted from it my entire life.
• CJKent_band

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  2 years ago

  @skibum609 "We should measure the prosperity of a nation not by the number of millionaires, but by the absence of poverty, the prevalence of health, the efficiency of the public schools, and the number of people who can and do read worthwhile books." ~ W. E. B. Du Bois
• skibum609

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  2 years ago

  Fuck Du Bois. Don't give a shit what he Hitler, Stalin, Biden sanders et al have to say. That fucking cum stain can define anything he likes, but it means jack shit. Public schools in this country, controlled by left-wing teachers unions are a fucking disgrace. Private school is the only way to get a decent education.
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  cap·i·tal·ism /ˈkapədlˌizəm/ noun an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state. So many on this thread seem to forget this basic definition. The alternative is a system by which people seek to game the state, or leech off everyone else. "Government is the great fiction, through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else." ― Frederic Bastiat
• rickdugan

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  2 years ago

  When I started college I was pursuing a very fluffy degree. That lasted about one year, after which I ended up completely on my own due to a falling out with my family. From there I lived like an animal, sleeping on a mattress on the floor with a toaster oven and hot plate as my main cooking implements and a rigged up hose attached to a bathtub faucet for my shower. I lived this way for years. There is nothing more eye opening and motivating than poverty. I did a ton of research on which majors paid well out of school and ultimately switched majors so that I could earn a decent living once I graduated. I worked full time while I attended classes full time and loaded up on Summer classes to finish quicker because frankly I was constantly exhausted. And throughout all that, I managed to graduate summa cum laude, which platformed me to my future career track. Oh, and yes, even back then, there was enough college aid and loans available to cover my tuition. But I also milked every moment I could at a cheaper college before I had to transfer to obtain my degree from a decent school. Between the cheaper school and earning an academic grant from my final destination, I was able to keep my student loans modest by today's standards. So ask me if I feel one ounce of sympathy for anyone who cannot do their own due diligence or work hard enough to get ahead and I'll tell you fuck no. I did it without two nickels to rub together when I started and I lived in some real hell holes, including one place where hookers and drug dealers would be out all night in front of my door. In this country, if you have the will and the brains, you can do well, regardless of where you start from.
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  Rick Dugan there is nothing deficient about today's young people, nothing they should receive remedial instruction about. Tetradon, your definition of capitalism is a small part of the story. It is also a system which requires expansion out to infinity, to solve the problems it creates. Eventually people realize that that kind of power cannot be left to private parties, it has to be taken by an elected government. And usually though to make this change it will require gun barrels. But not always. Sometimes it can be done via the ballot box, which is what I hope for. Mike710, Your narrative near the start of this thread. What you are describing is economic hardship, having to float bill payment with credit cards. People graduate from college, having had to work hard and live cheap, they expect more than that. They expect that they have staked themselves into the middle class, which has historically meant home ownership, and usually a wife and family. What you are describing is very widely true, but it is not what people had been led to expect, it is not what we should be basing our policy around. SJG Jane - School of Rock [view link] The Pretty Reckless - Take Me Down (Official Music Video) [view link] Down on Me - School of Rock [view link] Aquarius - School of Rock [view link]
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  @SJG, that is your (mis)interpretation. It requires guardrails, yes, but the freest economies in the world have unleashed the greatest prosperity among their people. The "social democracies" of Europe are actually rated as more free than America by many indices. The environment? No one cares about it if they can't eat. Inequality? Can't be unequal if everyone is a subsistence hunter/gatherer. Like a lot of keyboard socialists, you seem to think the revolutionaries with the guns are going to be on _your_ side. How was the USSR with the environment? What was the quality of life under Pol Pot's regime? When your ass gets sent to work 15 hours a day in the coal mines, you'll think "gee, maybe those times of posting everything I read on the internet 30+ hours a week to TUSCL weren't so bad after all."
• datinman

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  2 years ago

  Jumping back to the OP, yes, youth can be a struggle. Work hard, make good decisions, and it gets easier over time. There's a lot of good advice sprinkled through these posts. The only thing I would add is with time and nostalgia you will at one point in your life begin to romanticize those earlier struggles. You'll remember back somewhat fondly of the days where you only had enough money to eat Ramen noodles. You won't remember that old beater car as a piece of shit, but rather all the great sex you had and it. Don't waste your youth focusing on the struggle.
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  The greatest economic growth happens with a very regulated capitalism and when the top tax bracket is at 85%. The higher the upper income taxes the more of a middle class you will have. Otherwise our society will continue to go as other historical societies have gone, splitting into the very rich and hte very poor. And for datinman and Mike710, people trying to start out in professional careers are having harder time of it, and that is because of the free floating real estate market and the deindustrialization of America. If we handled agricultural land the same way, then very little land would be in production and feeding just yourself for one day would cost $200, and anyone without that $200 would be judged as mentally ill and subjected to drugging and internment. SJG
• Tetradon

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  2 years ago

  ^ Lazy. The top tax bracket was super high at the equivalent of $2.5 million in today's dollars. Almost no one paid it. It did not materially contribute to the nation's fiscal health. Look at the fraction of tax as a % of GDP. It spiked for WW2 and never came down. There aren't enough rich for Democratic spending schemes. [view link]
• san_jose_guy

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  2 years ago

  All we need is to keep the money circulating, as that is what creates jobs and business opportunities. We all lose when it goes into the real estate and securities ponzi schemes. We don't need to get more money out of the rich, we just need to get back from the fat the government spending which is already fattening them. SJG