• argenfarg@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    There is a long tradition of disparaging the lower classes for buying anything that isn’t a necessity.

    For historical context, there was a phrase you don’t hear too much any more: https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/nigger_rich

    Nobody wants to say that phrase out loud anymore, but the basic worldview persists and is just as callous and ungenerous as ever. This attitude underpins arguments against universal basic income and other welfare programs.

    The fortunate often attribute their success to good decisions, and attribute the failings of others to carelessness. Few are willing to acknowledge the role of dumb luck, or the fact that wealth means connections that lead to an easier road with easier choices.

    The lower classes are simultaneously regarded as impulsive, but expected to live like monks.