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All academia knows is how to beg for money. The entire goal of academia is to secure the next donation, grant, or other source of funding to keep the organization (and orgamism) alive.

So why wouldn't a tenured (recently or otherwise) member of academia believe they are entitled to your money?

Just like the "poor" person who has only known free healthcare, food, shelter, cell phone, etc., never having actually worked for any of it? (This is not the same as someone who did work, but failed to plan for a circumstance that resulted in them no longer working).

When someone is given everything they need to succeed, they never learn how to succeed, how to work toward a goal, how to have pride in themselves and their work.

If someone is taught that begging is the only way to success, they will become adept at begging, rather than working.

joiestylotus 2y ago

Not quite but securing funding for research is obvi very important in academia.

Do you have experience in academia or know/have spoken with professors and others in academic world to know what it’s about?

Another question: do you actually know any low income or socioeconomically disadvantaged “poor” people? Have you had any conversations with them or socialized with any blue collar people?

Contrary to your assumptions about those who receive free healthcare, food, shelter, cell phone, etc — you infer that they’re just lazy people who are laying around begging for free stuff and have a sense of entitlement — that is NOT the case majority of the time.

I’m going to make a guess that your frame of reference (family, friends, network) is upper middle class and up people, mostly white?

I suggest you try mentoring a low income/“poor” person and actually talk to some of them one-on-one, as a human being (without judgment) to get a sense of what life is really like for them.

Perhaps you can open doors and help them succeed. Opportunities and knowledge are NOT equal in society and there’s a correlation with money and race/ethnicity/sex that a person is born into.

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sexy search bot 2y ago

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Sedj 2y ago

We're actually on the same page - I am not referring to all blue collar, or low income, or socioeconomically disadvantaged (lol) "poor" people.

I am really just referring to the very small subset of people (who actually may not even be considered "poor") who make a living out of qualifying for public assistance. These are the people who will not work a full time job, even if they have the ability to do so, because it would disqualify them from benefits. Sometimes these are 2nd generation welfare beneficiaries, who watched their parents sit around, eat their government cheese, maybe do some odd job on the side to make some extra money that wouldn't be reported anywhere, but usually just sit around and wait for the next government check.

This is a VERY small subset of people. I don't want to imagine it as any larger than that, although some may assume it is larger than I do - and it is an extreme. I have benefitted from public assistance in my past, and you could make a case that I still do, even though I have worked for my needs for 30 years.

My point is that they do not want doors open. They are not looking for opportunities to work hard and improve themselves.. They have learned their existence is subsistence at the mercy of others.

You may want to believe that all anybody needs is a chance - and you're wrong. People blow their big chance all the time, or never even take it, or see it.

This absolute bullshit about equal talent, equal opportunity, equal anything - is crap. We are not equal. Period. Some people are just built different - scrap that, all people are built different. Some will see a chance to improve, and jump on it, and use it to improve. Others will not, even when presented the same chance.

My argument about "poor" people actually extends perfectly to those who live off their trust funds and family money and never need to work at anything. In my opinion, these people are just as "poor", because they never learn to work for (or on) themselves.

People do NOT have equal talent. Some are just better at things, others are not. For some, learning comes easy. For others, it is a struggle. Some will just never learn.

I would tell you to fuck off with your opinions on what my bias may be. I have one, and I won't deny it, but telling you to fuck off isn't helpful at the moment, so I'll give you the chance to understand.

WORK. DO THE FUCKING WORK.

Get good at it. Let other people see you doing it. Maybe they will catch on that you end your day exhausted, but feeling great. Maybe they'll see that no matter how busy you are, how sweaty and hot and dirty, if they ask you for help, you will help. Not to give them anything, but because, quite selfishly, it feels GOOD to WORK to HELP someone.

This isn't something you can give someone by opening a door, or dropping some change in a cup, or even knocking the silver spoon out of their mouth. It is something learned (in my opinion) by example, and the person would likely need to WANT to change (after finding something lacking in themselves) before following the example.

Work - like Voltaire imagined it. We can always be in the best possible world, because it is the only world we will ever know, and we can always be WORKING to improve it.

So no, this wasn't me taking a shit on the poor, or on academia. This is me pitying them, and wishing they would eventually find the contentment, the inner peace, the personal pride that only comes from WORK, not from being given things.

joiestylotus 2y ago

Actually, I would not have a problem with you telling me to fk off. Thanks for response, will get back to you later.

joiestylotus 2y ago

I have a respone.

joiestylotus 2y ago

However, there seems to be a character limit since it’s not letting me post.

joiestylotus 2y ago

Sorry, it just posted multiple times. Just read the 1st response and ignore the duplicate posts.

I’m not able to delete the repeat posts. Will continue my response posts, continuing from article link of the 1st post.

joiestylotus 2y ago

So, guess I have to break it up in posting response to you. No idea what character limit on nostr is tho.

joiestylotus 2y ago

You seem like a rather cynical person?

I think the small subset of people you are talking about are a tiny percentage of people irl but that people (esp those who vote red) overestimate them, particularly because the word “welfare” has been so politicized in USA.

In Social Democratic countries like in Scandinavia — Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Iceland — their residents/citizens don’t have to worry about going hungry, being billed thousands of dollar for going to the ER for a minor health issue nor do their not well off elderly work at Walmart/Target, etc. It’s because those countries have a generous social welfare programs, but higher taxes.

Norway also has free higher education for those who want to go to uni or it did years ago according to a Norwegian friend. He loves Norway and even tho he has visited USA several times, no way in hell would he ever want to live in America. (Perhaps he’d sacrifice if he fell in love with an American girl.)

Healthcare is a right and not a privilege in Scandi and other developed countries. Residents don’t go bankrupt because their healthcare system isn’t a profit based system.

Scandi countries also have very generous parental leave policy for both mothers and fathers, paid parental leave for over a year. I know Sweden does via a Diplomat’s son.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Scandi countries rate very high in Happiness index. Finland has been #1 for 6 years.

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/world-happiest-countries-2023-wellness/index.html

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/03/charted-the-happiest-countries-in-the-world/

joiestylotus 2y ago

1) You seem like a rather cynical person?

Healthcare is a right and not a privilege in Scandi and other developed countries. Residents don’t go bankrupt because their healthcare system isn’t a profit based system.

joiestylotus 2y ago

You seem like a rather cynical person?

joiestylotus 2y ago

You seem like a rather cynical person?

joiestylotus 2y ago

2) Continuation of response after WEF article link:

Trustfunders, “VIP” and rich kids of nepotism — imho, many of them are spoiled, entitled, financially privileged brats who lack direction, initiative, purpose in life and end up partying and developing alcohol/drug problems.

If they don’t end up in rehab or dead, many of them will still be considered “successful” and do will economically because of their parents, who they know and their frame of reference, social circles, door/opportunities open to them via connections.

Contrary to the myth of the Black Welfare Queen, the biggest % of welfare recipients are white people in America. But because of racism, Americans are conditioned to think of “lazy” Black people when they hear “welfare.” It’s fking racist BULLSHIT!

No one likes begging nor at being at the mercy of others cuz people are inherently selfish, and I realize not everyone will give money to the homeless or treat them as a person. Or buy a 🇬🇧The Big Issue from a roughsleeper.

https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/how-many-people-are-homeless-in-the-uk-and-what-can-you-do-about-it/

joiestylotus 2y ago

3) I agree with you that people are NOT equal in talent. However, TRULY talented people can be found everywhere, across all sectors (countries, poor/rich, race/ethnicity/heritage, gender, professions, etc.).

But it definitely makes a HUGE difference in the talented, genius kid’s life of the circumstances s/he were born into.

So if they could do a study of identical twins who were both adopted with one kid placed in a wealthy white parents environment/upbringing and the other identical twin adopted/raised by low income POC parents who live in an urban environment — let’s say Compton, California — I’m pretty sure their outcomes would be most likely be very different, despite being same genetically, talent and intellectual capacity wise.

The identical twin raised by wealthy white parents in a beautiful, safe, lots of trees/nature environment (probably in a gated community or homogenous suburb, both mostly of white residents) is going to have hell of a LOT more opportunities and much, much more likely to attend college. Also much healthier, physically and mentally. And be successful in life. And marry a similar person to them, raise kids in similar “good” places, etc.

The identical twin raised by POC parents in a STRESSFUL urban environment with lack of options/opportunities — like the banlieues in France — is going to have hell of a LOT more struggles, even just to attend a good, safe elementary school because in America, schools are funded based on property taxes and houses are overwhelmingly owned by white people.

joiestylotus 2y ago

4) I personally think every school should get EQUAL, SAME amount in funding to be fair.

The way the education system in America is set up is like if there was an Apple pie and some kid gets a much bigger portion of pie just based on how/where/who they are born to, not something the kid can control.

In my view, if kids attend a party, they should be all getting the SAME size slice of Apple pies.

If you’re American, you obvi know the 🍏🥧 is considered to be a very American thing?

Anyway, every single person in 🌎🌍🌏 has a dream. But some people are much more likely to achieve them and ditto wealth, simply based on factors that they cannot control like socioeconomic background they were born into, race/ethnicity/heritage, etc.

People aren’t born equal but some people have much more things stacked AGAINST them (Poor, POCs, not male) and the playing field is not fair nor level.

I’m about levelling the field more, so it’s more fair. ETHICAL capitalism.

Also, there is fallacy in “meritocracy” cuz again, it goes back to the level of access and opportunities available.

Look at SAT/ACT scores and its correlation to WHO get high scores — those who had access to SAT prep courses, higher income family kids,

etc., whatnot.

Anyway, enough wasting my valuable time writing response. Hope you have a nice Friday!