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Hawke[_3_]

On 4/24/2010 12:23 PM, wrote:
On Apr 24, 3:11 pm, wrote:

and mostly about economics, IQs and productivity.

What it boils down to is that in a capitalist system like we have you
have a small group of winners who are fabulously wealthy and you have a
large group who has only a little to show for their efforts. They get by
and that's about it, and the rest of the people have virtually nothing
and can't even find jobs to pay for a normal living. There used to be a
large middle class but that was a short term fluke which ended when
Reagan got elected. Which is why I prefer getting rich the traditional
way in America, by inheritance.

Hawke

My own experience differs from yours. Can't say that I am fabulously
wealthy, but I worked or went to school pretty much all the time since
I was 16. I did miss something like 6 days of work because of lay
offs. Always saved money and now I am well off. So regardless of how
the world seems to you, there is a large group that has worked hard
and now has a good bit to show for it.

Don't believe me. Then ask Iggy.

Dan

That's one man's experience. What I am talking about is the statistics
of the whole. It's no more impossible for someone to do what you did
than it is for someone to start with zero and wind up a billionaire.
That's what Bill Gates did. But that is not a true picture of reality.
Want to know how it is for most people? When they retire after 40 years
of work or so about 98% can't get by without government benefits. For
those who are working full time the average household income is around
50K or less and that is for two full time workers, which works out to
two people making less than 15 dollars an hour and with few benefits. So
that is the state of things. Also remember I'm not talking about what
happens when there is an economic downturn, which happens with great
regularity. I'm glad that things worked out for you. My complaint is
that it doesn't for the vast majority of Americans even when they played
by the rules. When the bulk of the workers in a country have little to
show for it after years of full time work it seems to me that isn't a
system that I would be bragging about.

Hawke