I read a number I didn't believe, the other night in Newsweek, about what percentile heisenbug and I are in... I guess I should have believed it.
I have problems with this sometimes too, and we have similar stories. Lower-half-of-the-economic-spectrum upbringing, Upper-x% adult reality. However, we also both live in expensive urban areas, so while we aren't hurting for money by a long shot, and can basically do whatever we want, there seem to be plenty more folks around with a lot more money. If we were to be suddenly transplanted to, say, the town you grew up in, I'm sure our salaries would feel like the Upper-x% that they are.
I am part of the economy's problem now, for the retail sector anyway
I'm of the opinion that you (and I, and everyone else that doesn't/isn't buying much) aren't part of the problem, but part of the painful solution. As a culture we have to (in my opinion) reset what "normal" consumption levels are. We can't bounce back to where things were, it was unsustainable. As a society we need to have those blue collar and service folks save some part of their earnings, not spend it all to maintain some ideal lifestyle of consumption. States, companies, people don't have rainy day funds, and they all need them.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2009-01-27 04:56 pm (UTC)I have problems with this sometimes too, and we have similar stories. Lower-half-of-the-economic-spectrum upbringing, Upper-x% adult reality. However, we also both live in expensive urban areas, so while we aren't hurting for money by a long shot, and can basically do whatever we want, there seem to be plenty more folks around with a lot more money. If we were to be suddenly transplanted to, say, the town you grew up in, I'm sure our salaries would feel like the Upper-x% that they are.
I am part of the economy's problem now, for the retail sector anyway
I'm of the opinion that you (and I, and everyone else that doesn't/isn't buying much) aren't part of the problem, but part of the painful solution. As a culture we have to (in my opinion) reset what "normal" consumption levels are. We can't bounce back to where things were, it was unsustainable. As a society we need to have those blue collar and service folks save some part of their earnings, not spend it all to maintain some ideal lifestyle of consumption. States, companies, people don't have rainy day funds, and they all need them.