I said told you the sky is green, you wouldn’t get upset with me because I’m clearly wrong.
No one gets upset at the patently false.
The things they disagree with, that have a hint of truth, though, infuriate them.
I have the tendency to piss people off because they kinda sorta know I’m at least a little bit right and it bugs them. The truth can set you free, but it’s going to sting first.
If you can swallow your pride and admit the things you know to be true but don’t want to believe, you have a fighting chance at changing your life.
If not, you’ll probably stay the same.
This quote sums up my intentions:
‘When you want to help people, you tell them the truth. When you want to help yourself, you tell them what they want to hear.’– Thomas Sowell
You’re Not Nearly as Oppressed as You Think You Are
If you live in the west, you’re not oppressed. Ok. You might be oppressed to a degree, but let’s zoom out.
The people around the globe who support your lifestyle are oppressed.
The working conditions of the iPhone factory are so bad that they had to put nets around the building because people were jumping to their deaths mid-shit.
Everyone in the west loves to play the wealth inequality game looking upward only.
If you make $34k a year, you’re part of the one percent globally. Let’s tax you. Why don’t you give half of your income to the rest of the world? I thought you were caring and generous.
I’m saying this partially in jest. Tons of Americans and people in the West are suffering.
Of course racism, sexism, and all the isms exist and affect people. There are several problems with the way society is constructed and society does oppress you.
But it’s all relative.
The Internet Makes Anything Possible
I’ve spent years studying the internet’s power. It’s the great equalizer. Upward mobility is possible for pretty much anyone if they want to harness the power of the web.
I’ve seen Walmart employees become six-figure tech workers in months. I personally know dozens, if not hundreds of people at this point, who make a full-time living using a computer.
It’s not easy but…it’s only your life we’re talking about here.
“But I’m not a tech person.” Become one.
“I don’t have time.” Yes, you do. You watch T.V. and go to bars and restaurants on the weekend.
“Most people fail at online business.” True, but it’s because they’re impatient, lazy, and quit within months if not weeks if not days.
Also, it’s so strange to me that people are afraid to put themselves out there online because of what random strangers on the internet might say across a computer screen. You’re afraid of a screen.
A screen?!?!?
You’re better than this.
Most Rich People Are Hardworking and Honest
Many people have this image of greedy scrooge-type millionaires or trust fund babies when most millionaires are more like the people described in The Millionaire Next Door. Here’s an excerpt from a New York Times article titled The Rich Are Not Who We Think They Are:
“[…] researchers found that the typical rich American is, in their words, the owner of a “regional business,” such as an “auto dealer” or a “beverage distributor.”
It goes on:
Among members of the top 0.1 percent, the researchers found, about three times as many make the majority of their income from owning a business as from being paid a wage. Salaries don’t make people rich nearly as often as equity does.
Most wealthy people simply chose vehicles that create wealth and worked on them until they got them to work.
Why should they have to subsidize your life just because they made choices you didn’t?
Teachers should get paid more, but they don’t and never will. We all know this. It’s unfair, but not unsurprising. Let’s deal in reality, not the way we think things should be.
Ironically, the politicians who claim the wealthy should pay more are truly the ones stealing your wealth.
Don’t be mad at entrepreneurs, be mad at ‘rent-seekers.’
Rent seeking (or rent–seeking) is an economic concept that occurs when an entity seeks to gain added wealth without any reciprocal contribution of productivity.
Elon makes money because people want Teslas. Most wealth is built through voluntary transactions. The deep irony is that most people vehemently support the real criminals who live in Washington D.C.
source: https://twitter.com/nntaleb/status/1185178176521199621/photo/1
Nobody Put a Gun to Your Head
Wealthy people do profit from your labor. You are the foundation of these businesses and you do get paid less than you deserve.
But…that’s just how business works.
How else are they going to make money other than by paying you less than what you deserve?
To me the sentence “but they should pay me more!” sounds like a five-year-old kid who’s mad that his brother got a bigger scoop of ice cream. Remove the word should from your equation. Capitalism is a ruthless game filled with sharks. You think you’re going to change that? Good luck.
Let me arrive at the point, though.
Nobody put a gun to your head and told you to work where you work. I remember being irritated at the fact that my employer was making money off of me. I sought to quit my job so I could get all the money instead of just complaining.
Everything you do in life is literally a choice. Sure, your hand might be forced, but you always have a choice.
Nobody is making you do anything.
Politicians Either Hate You Or They’re Dumb, Probably Both
Partisan politics is vicious.
Both parties constantly disagree except when it comes to:
- Printing metric shit tons of money
- Starting wars and lining the pockets of defense contractors
- Lining their own pockets. Somehow all these ‘civil servants’ end up rich
These people hate you and think you’re stupid.
Honestly, when it comes to the latter, they might be right.
At this point, if you have sincere faith in politicians and the government, I’m not sure what I can say to convince you they hate you, but I’ll still try.
The United States government spent 6.82 trillion dollars last year. According to the UN, which suggested Elon should fix world hunger, it would cost a mere 6 billion or .00087% of the U.S government’s annual spending to solve the problem. Less than a tenth of a thousandth of a percent.
They seem to be able to print money whenever they feel like it so…why don’t they solve world hunger? Why is it Elon’s Job?
There’s this myth that the government doesn’t pour money into efforts like fixing education and poverty. They do, but they just suck at it because they’re wildly incompetent.
Both interpretations of politicians suck. Either they’re evil or stupid. Most likely both. Stop relying on them whatsoever.
You Are Powerful Beyond Measure
Stop relying on anyone that isn’t you, period.
These days, some people really, really, really don’t like being told they have agency or power. Being helpless is trendy. And it’s a trend that makes me sick. It’s like a contest to see who can be the most coddled and whiny.
I’m being so harsh because it just bothers me so much.
You guys are all way more talented, capable, and powerful than you think you are. You have everything you need to be able to do anything you want in this life.
And so many people are just letting the societal puppeteers rob them of power.
I never once in my life thought I couldn’t do whatever I put my mind to. Even when I was failing in life, I didn’t blame society, I blamed myself because I was being lazy and living below my potential and I knew it.
If you guys want to read articles about the evil of capitalism from people who make $10,000 a month writing about the evils of capitalism on Medium, go right ahead.
Or you could choose to hear a message from me that stings a little bit but is much more beneficial to you in the long run.
Follow the White Rabbit
Yes, it’s cliche to quote the Matrix and it’s overdone but it’s just the perfect microcosm for society so I’m gonna do it anyway.
This quote from Morpheus sums it up well:
You have to understand. Most people are not ready to be unplugged. And many of them are so inured and so hopelessly dependent on the system that they will fight to protect it.
People will fight for their own mediocrity and argue for their limitations.
Part of you wants to be unplugged and free, but the other part of you is resistant to it. You want to keep telling yourself the convenient lies and make excuses because it keeps you psychologically safe.
Once you understand the truth about the way the world works, you can’t unknow it so then you’re stuck with the choice of doing something about your situation or failing to do something about your situation while knowing you could do something about it.
That’s a cold, lonely, and brutal place to be mentally and emotionally so you opt to just lie to yourself instead.
There is no fun and rosy motivational pep talk here.
You need to snap out of it now because things are only going to get more chaotic and the gap is only going to grow.
Deep down I think you know this. Whether or not you’re going to do anything about it is on you.