It’s been a stereotype for at least the last 50 years. Why has this never changed? Why has organized labor not had a substantial effect for such an essential part of the workforce?

  • MerryJaneDoe
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    3 days ago

    It hasn’t been for some time.

    “Education” is indoctrination. That’s why kids are forced to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. It’s why I was taught about Columbus. It’s why I believed that “Honest Abe” fought for the rights of slaves.

    All bullshit, but each was a small building block to believing that somehow the US was a special place, a blessed nation, where personal expression and equality and opportunity were valued and hard work meant success.

    And the sad thing - even at its worst, the US is still a better place to live than 80% of the world.

    • h54@programming.dev
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      3 days ago

      And the sad thing - even at its worst, the US is still a better place to live than 80% of the world.

      I’d say it depends on what you value. If one is born of a certain caste (or above) and wants to accumulate stuff, I’d say you’re right.

      • MerryJaneDoe
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        3 days ago

        We don’t really have castes in the US. But yes, being poor sucks anywhere in the world.

        I was speaking more in terms of infrastructure and public assistance. For example, I was able to get a student loan and an education in the States. I have clean, potable tap water. Dependable utilities. Those sorts of things.

        • h54@programming.dev
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          2 days ago

          We don’t really have castes in the US. But yes

          I’d argue the US does. Things such as zipcode and skin color determine outcomes and are inescapable. Economic mobility doesn’t exist as it does in the myth of the American dream. Sure if one is really lucky and works very hard, one can move from living in or on the edge of disaster to being a few paychecks away from disaster.

          I was speaking more in terms of infrastructure and public assistance. For example, I was able to get a student loan and an education in the States. I have clean, potable tap water. Dependable utilities. Those sorts of things.

          I’d argue that’s not true either. Again, it depends on your zipcode. So many places don’t have potable water, reliable services, or functional infrastructure. One’s ability to get student loans depends on what zipcode they’re born into.