Sometimes people say things because we have all been conditioned to say them, and we refuse to learn any better, such as, “If you work hard, then everything will work out in your favor.” This year, we have seen the worst of the worst get the best of the best, and ironically, what is frightening to the “elites” is that people are starting to notice that. For years, they have run the media and themselves in such a way that teaches us to “admire” them, not unlike how peasants “worshipped” the king in the first days of feudalism. However, one thing has been made abundantly clear, and even the most brainwashed individuals are awakening to it: the only thing that hard work does for poor people is get us more opportunities to work.
As a white-collar worker, I have worked myself into an injury, and still managed to work “compensation” time, while having to attend medical appointments. I have worked myself sick twice, and if not for my positive COVID test, I could have potentially lost my job. Most of my jobs have been done simultaneously, which is what I did to “improve my resume” when I still believed that human beings were looking at what I did and making informed decisions. Consequently, I was undercompensated, told to “work harder,” and encouraged to get even more education despite getting a bachelor’s, a technical master’s, and multiple certificates. Sometimes I wonder if the people I used to know are looking at the world today and finally questioning their rationalization of an unjust, unequal system within the white-collar world that allows the bulk of the workers to make less than it costs to survive.
As a service worker, I have seen someone work while maintaining the pain of a brain tumor, still maintaining her good humor and being a reliable team member. One of the younger team members manages two jobs, and still manages to maintain boundaries about the work she does for the store. What do the good employees get for doing good work? More responsibilities, more hours, and less support because we become more “reliable.” That is the danger of being a good employee in the service world: people will always want more, but they will not necessarily offer more because they think, “Eh, this one will figure it out.” Not everyone wants to be ambitious, and it seems stressful to be so good at a job that more hours are offered with less support. I am lucky that my boss strikes a balance and has effective communication because oblivious or obnoxious bosses erode one’s confidence in service environments.
Honestly, I think that more people are starting to see the empire as the sham it is, and nothing about this country makes people think that they have a fighting chance for a reasonable life. Many are trying to leave, but the debt we have can make it impossible. Getting more than half the planet should be an impossible task, but getting enough should be the ways things work, especially if people show that we have been willing to work to get it. Lying about what we can get if we work hard has been one of the reasons that people have been experiencing despair, but I feel like folks are finally working on not internalizing that message.
Chasing A Dying Empire 