How They Misthink

In the Civilized World, especially Britain and America, the “poor,” most especially the “working poor” misthink a lot. They truly mistake their place in the scheme of society and economics and, because of this, have replaced pride with hubris.

I wonder about people who think that those who are poor shouldn’t demand reciprocity from their employers. We should devote ourselves to something that doesn’t benefit us more than it absolutely has to? We’re meant to care about their best interests, but they don’t have to care about ours? If you’re going to put as little as possible into my training and wages, if you’re going to make sure that I can’t get enough hours to survive in order to avoid giving me healthcare, and generally make sure that I’m as uncomfortable as possible at any given time just to make sure I know my place, then how can you expect me to care about your profit margin?

— Linda Tirado
Hand to Mouth

This is an all too common failing though more detrimental to both individuals and nations when coming from the “poor.” They conflate their worth as people with their worth to their employer and almost always over-inflate and overstate that importance.

Jobs Strategy
Hubris Is A Self-Punishing Sin

What these people fail to realize or, at least, fail to accept and internalize is that the only reason that they have one or more jobs is that, at the current time, it’s more feasible and/or cost effective for employers to employ them than it is to either outsource the work or replace the bulk of the labor process with automation. They can’t or won’t grasp the simple concept that they’re by and large disposable and interchangeable parts insofar as the context of their work is concerned and that this is the basic, incontrovertible nature of very low-level, largely unskilled labor.

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7 Responses to “How They Misthink”

  1. Buffet Says:

    I am continually amazed by the sheer number of individuals who choose to forgo a specialty, a trade, a degree, or any type of training that would make them a viable candidate for worthwhile employment!
    Rather, they seem to prefer toiling incessantly at some mindless, menial……rubbish I’d call it?
    This is another one of those issues I just simply cannot wrap my mind around. The concept of being a mindless drone with no bloody ambition escapes me?
    Did I mention that this seems very prevalent where I live?

  2. jonolan Says:

    Perhaps it will seem less amazing if you comes to terms with the fact that these drones made those choices or, at least, the choices that led to them being fit for only such labor, all the back in their childhood and their “parents” never corrected them, possibly having made the same choices in their childhoods.

  3. Buffet Says:

    To relegate oneself to a life of……(fill in your own term) seems completely irrational? Not to stereotype, but I’ve also noted that these types often seem easily entertained, don’t seem to contemplate anything outside their own tiny sphere, many times have little or no regard for others or the environment, and are generally, again by their own choice, in poor health and physical condition. Not much of a life. Nor really much of an existence.

  4. jonolan Says:

    All that seems quite true. I was just pointing out that it makes more sense if you consider that they made choices in their childhood that cut off a lot of options and relegated them to such an existence as “adults.”

  5. Buffet Says:

    I suddenly feel even more blessed that usual. There’s a great big world out there, full of anything anyone could want. I guess it boils down to desire?

  6. jonolan Says:

    Desire and the will to achieve what is desired. It the latter that is sorely lacking in many of the modern generations.

  7. Buffet Says:

    Once again, I’m not smart enough to fathom their reasoning. I’ll merely give thanks once again for my lot in life.

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