I don't believe most people think that a working businessperson is among the "evil rich". The Evil Rich are people like Wall St. bankers, who buy up stocks on-the-cheap from the masses whenever there's a scare, then sell the stocks back to people at higher prices later on and pocket the difference; thereby sucking wealth out of the middle class and into their pockets. The Evil Rich are people running the multi-national corporations that send jobs to China where they can get the work cheaper, because China doesn't protect their people from externalities (like pollution), but do absorb many of the costs of health care with a nationalized system. These same Evil Rich run ads at home talking up their "environmental initiatives", and sit in Washington D.C. lobbying against universal health care because it would create a tax they can't legally dodge. The Evil Rich are the klatch of corporate executives and big shareholders that create wealth on paper just long enough to convert it into "real" money, and then walk away and leave everyone else to watch their investments collapse as the shady accounting breaks down (think Enron - but it's far more widespread than just that incident, and everyone knows it). No, the Evil Rich aren't the guys busting their butts running a plumbing business while they struggle to provide health insurance for their family, or the family trying to run a local grocery store up against a Wal-Mart. We know who the Evil Rich are. We may have a hard time defining them, but as Justice Potter Stewart wrote, "I know it when I see it."
This could be the time to start a new business or pursue something you always wanted to. I know this was a driver for starting my blog (in-between jobs then) and is now an alternative revenue stream for me. The thing is to not a job loss too personally and think outside of tbe box when looking for new opps.
Oh I have so many thoughts about this post ranging from Communist China with its oppressive regime (which America keeps pumping money into), to the lower economic class in America with its "give me, the government owes me" attitude (not all are like that, but it's prevalent), to our illegal immigration issues.
So many thoughts but I'm not ambitious enough to type them all out. It would be a long read.
What is truly inside you comes out when you have excessive spendable income or when you don't have enough to pay the bills in spite of wise choices. One of the many reasons why you should be so picky about who you listen to regarding financial advice. Choose your mentors very carefully. Guard what you let your mind and heart take in. There are so many "gurus" out there, but many I can blast about because of their deeper beliefs/issues they may not talk directly about, but you can see in their writings and hear it in their chatter.
Guard your heart and mind and feed yourself properly.
...but corporations. In America, corporations are the true evil. Whereas a rich person may choose not to share their wealth, many corporations actively steal wealth from others with absolutely no conscience. Insurance companies lobby Congress to give them full power to deny claims at will, credit card companies fight for their right to fleece their customers, agribusiness kills the individual farmer and banks destroy our economy and their shareholder's retirement by pursuing greed.
And of course it is the people, desperate to protect their wealth, that allow these corporations free reign. Not just the people in Congress who pass the laws or the shysters who wage wars for profit, but every single one of us that votes to keep corporations running the nation because we're terrified of losing even our own small little slice of the pie.
And therein lies the real truth. The ultimate evil has never been rich people even though some people may focus their frustrations on them. The ultimate evil is greed, whether it is a single person, unwilling to share their bounty with the less fortunate or a corporation seeking profit regardless of the cost.
Great post Sarah. In America, we put wealthy corporations above people. Just look at Enron.Anther example is how we measure GDP; for profit prisons, hospitals, and wars, the list goes on. For there to be less "evil" we must have more balance, somthing is terribly wrong.
If we define "evil" as against the societal norm, and we define a main tenet of society as the benefit of everyone in the societal group, then there is something inherently evil not about money itself, but the possession of wealth.
For in hoarding more than one needs to survive, one is placing himself above, as more important than, those members of society living in povery/starving, etc.
Or course, this may simply be the intersection of pro-growth capitalism with the relatively modern conception of civilization. However, I would say there's at least an implicit selfishness in choosing personal wealth (the amount of comfort you attain over survival) at the expense (given that the supply of currency, and hence wealth, at any given time is not unlimited and free) of many living in poverty. If there is an "evil," I believe it would come out of that fact.
In addition, Weber's protestant land ethic (especially the current, godless form) plays a decent part in this, especially in America. Supplemented with the relatively modern notion of "work" as having intrinsic value (instead of the means to an end), these two facts--both reactions to and products of American capitalism, a very peculiar brand of capitalism indeed--there is a hate that seems to seethe from both sides. From the top down, there's a "why should I pay for him not to work" sort of arguement, the one commonly used against welfare, etc. Coming from the bottom up, there's, firstly, a reaction to the prior point, which leads to a resentment of that upper class, and a feeling of constrained mobility, caused by the limitation of wealth enforced by the upper class (to say nothing of the fact that equal distribution would not avert this consequence).
Not trying to get all Marxist on everyone; I'm aware that probably has a little bit of a lean that way on it.
As for China, I don't know too much about the history of economic class conflict and such, but it would be an interesting project to contrast the American structure of "wealth hating" with the Chinese one, which I'm sure precedes Mao.
I believe that evilness or goodness is an inherent thing, not based on possession of money, however:
I have read in the newspapers about people who die because they were denied health coverage or treatments.
The wide extent of foreclosures in this credit crisis lends credibility to the concept of Predatory Lending. On a case by case basis, the individual is at fault but the banks were willing to suck customers dry with interest payments.
The search company that "does no evil", along with other American technology companies are helping to build the "great firewall of China."
Punitive damages for the Exxon Valdiz oil spill in Alaska were finally reduced from $2.5 billion to $507 million, and now Exxon is trying to weasel out of paying interest on this fine from the 1989 incident. By the way, while we are struggling at the pump, Exxon set a new record for quarterly profits of $11.5 billion.
No-bid contracts in Iraq are making billions producing either substandard or completely unusable construction. Halliburton even got away with serving our troops contaminated water in Iraq.
Tax breaks for the wealthy are widening gap between wealthy and poor individuals. And how about UBS, the Swiss bank under investigation for helping hide its clients money from the IRS. One way or another, the middle class is going to pay for this unsustainable deficit our government is running, not the wealthy.
Even Bill Gates, with his new charitable foundation, was head of Microsoft at the time the company was convicted of monopolistic practices that put others out of business. Personally, I think he's just trying to buy his way into heaven. Good luck, Bill.
I won't attack individuals just because their wealthy, but I won't defend them either.
Nora, the problem with all of your suggestions is that they're all mainstream and are aimed at the masses. If people are relying on a brochures they're picking up at tourism offices and convention bureaus, they're going to be going where everyone else is going and only getting the "touristic" experience.
I disagree with using the press information too. I look at this stuff all the time (I'm a travel writer) and generally it's only more mainstream suggestions presented as insider advice.
Wiki, ditto, is mainstream, aimed at everyone, and the sources aren't always reliable. I can't tell you how many times I've found inaccuracies in relation to destinations I know intimately.
And as for your state department warnings, most of the time they're wrong. They try to play it too safe. The FBI site is another that's full of inaccuracies, it's laughable.
As for tripadvisor... you can't trust everything you read... you need to make sure that the person who's opinion your trusting has the same kind of taste and preferences to you. And how do you know they know what they're talking about? How can a person who only goes on holidays for 2 weeks of the year 'know' travel? compared to say a professional travel writer who stays in hotels for 300 nights of the year. I'm sorry, but I'm going to go with the professional over the amateur for travel advice, just as I would for advice regarding my health, my car, my finance, etc.
And by saying this I'm not saying 'guidebooks rule'. They don't - always. They can often be out of date. The author who writes one may have vastly different standards of taste to another, may not be as thorough at updating as another, may have no attention to detail and no skills at discernment. With any guidebook - just like with tripadvisor - you need to make sure you 'click' with the author, that you like the same kind of restaurants, the same kind of hotels, the same sorts of sights, etc.
But it's that taste, strength of opinion and skills of discernment that I want - what you call "biases" - who really wants bland information? Who really wants to be sent to a place that every other tourist is sent to so that you're sitting in a restaurant that has no character and personality and is only full of other tourists?
That's why my main resource - as both a travel writer and a traveller - is always locals. However, not just any locals, but locals I can trust with knowledge and expertise. So if I want to find the best restaurants, I research one restaurant thoroughly and once there - if it meets my expectations - I chat to the waiters, restaurant manager and even the chef and find out where they like to eat on their day off. At a bar, I ask the bar tender, at a boutique I like, I ask the manager or shop assistant for recommendations for other stores like that one, at an art gallery I ask for tips for other galleries showing similar art, etc.
You're getting expert advice this way that's also free and at the same time you're getting to meet fascinating locals. Stay clear of the tourist offices and guidebooks, and simply talk to knowledgeable, friendly locals. And you'll make friends along the way!
* Churches in Europe, especially Italy, are also full of exquisite art by some of the world's great masters
* Museums in many European and Asian countries also offer a free day or night, sometimes it's weekly, sometimes monthly. The Middle East many museums are still free or very cheap.
* European city tourist offices often offer special cards, eg. a Turin Card in Turin, Italy, which for a dirt-cheap price offers unlimited free public transport, free entry to some museums, discounts to others, etc.
* people-watching is still one of the cheapest activities and in Europe and the Middle East most cafes and bars have no problem with you sitting on one coffee or drink for hours while you watch the world go by.
* take a picnic compiled of food bought from a local market to a local park or by the sea, and you get to save money on a meal as well as do some people-watching and take in the local colour and action.
Provided I have room (I'm a travel writer so my bags are generally full of brochures, press kits, local books, etc), I always opt for things produced locally such as...
* a CD by a local musician or band a novel or book of short stories by a local author. Read or listened to on the trip, they can later become one of your most precious souvenirs, that - re-read and listened to for years to come or years later - will help bring back memories of the trip. Loan the book out or play the music to a friend or family member and they'll get a taste of your experiences. Books and music produced by local publishing houses and production companies are generally cheap too, especially in Asia and the Middle East.
* supermarket souvenirs - unusual packets of gum or candy from Asia or mint tea, orange blossom water or rose syrup from the Middle East; spicy relishes or preserves, or even vacuum packed meats and cheeses from Europe. Give them away to friends and family, enjoy them together or savour them alone.
I have a friend of mine that has a pool cleaning business. To help with the cleaning of the pool, he would squirt Dawn down the middle of the pool and all of the dirt, suntan lotion, etc. would move to the edges of the pool for easy clean up, and as an added bonus, it really makes the pools sparkle.
I struggle with my desire to make money and my desire to be a good person. While I know that they are not, by any means, opposing poles they seem to be equated as such among most of my friends and family. I do worry about succeeding at making money and whether it will drive away friends and family. Thanks for the wonderful post about where these feelings come from, they do help me to understand.
I use Grocerygame.com to pair coupons with sales (I'm too lazy to do it myself) and I've been able to drop my grocery budget to ~$100/month for two people.
I do, however, love your point about booze. I too find that the only times our budget doesn't make it is when we buy beer or booze. I simply don't, but that's not an option for many. However, we do buy booze and hang out at home with friends instead of going out to bars where it's much more expensive if we're feeling like drinking.
I wonder, and am interested to see, what the effect of the government input of $$ into the housing market will look like in how it effects the house prices.
Wow... I never knew that there were so many aspects of concessions that I didn't know about. Thanks so much to all of your commenters who have given me some great insights into the business.
For new parents (or soon to be) try the service called freecycle.com which is an email list you sign up for in your local area. If you have something to get rid of, put it out to all the group members who then contact you if they want/need it. It's a great way to recycle the things you don't need anymore and usually they are good communities. I don't have kids, but there are ALWAYS gently used infant/child/maternity/etc. products of all shapes and kinds available.
I know that tightening your belt is important when you loose or can't find a job, but sometimes spending a little bit of money on a good therapist can help you get your mental stamina back to approach looking for work. They can also help you determine what you can/might be good at doing. Many thearapists have sliding scales or you can ask about a local clinic that has sliding scales so that you can find therapy you can afford. It helps a lot with longer unemployment especially.
I think it depends on your experience with "the rich". If you're working a minimum wage job for some "entrepreneur" who breaks the law. Now, suppose you don't know these laws, because you don't have any "rich" lawyers as friends, and no "rich" union buddies. Then, yeah, you might start to think of all people with any level of affluence as fundamentally bad.
My experience wasn't that, but, as a micro-business operator. I've noticed this shitty trend of rich guys who don't pay their bills. Now, there are some who do, but, by and large, it's the ones who have a fairly large pile of cash who are the cheapskates and check-bouncers. The ones who are good at paying are the more "middle class" folks who work at their relatively nice jobs or do contract work. When I made appeals to their "good sides" to pay for services rendered, it was the trust funders who didn't pay.
Now, that, to me, is bad behavior. It borders on "evil".
So, lesson learned: don't trust rich people to pay on their debts. Some of them are thieves. They got rich by being thieves, and that's clearly how they stay rich. :-)
I live with my parents and this is what I took to work each day when we had roast! You can buy a fantastic roast for a phenominal price now, and there are tons of ways to serve it up each day! I love mine with roasted potatoes, but this saved me when I didn't have any money for lunches!
I don't believe most people think that a working businessperson is among the "evil rich". The Evil Rich are people like Wall St. bankers, who buy up stocks on-the-cheap from the masses whenever there's a scare, then sell the stocks back to people at higher prices later on and pocket the difference; thereby sucking wealth out of the middle class and into their pockets. The Evil Rich are people running the multi-national corporations that send jobs to China where they can get the work cheaper, because China doesn't protect their people from externalities (like pollution), but do absorb many of the costs of health care with a nationalized system. These same Evil Rich run ads at home talking up their "environmental initiatives", and sit in Washington D.C. lobbying against universal health care because it would create a tax they can't legally dodge. The Evil Rich are the klatch of corporate executives and big shareholders that create wealth on paper just long enough to convert it into "real" money, and then walk away and leave everyone else to watch their investments collapse as the shady accounting breaks down (think Enron - but it's far more widespread than just that incident, and everyone knows it). No, the Evil Rich aren't the guys busting their butts running a plumbing business while they struggle to provide health insurance for their family, or the family trying to run a local grocery store up against a Wal-Mart. We know who the Evil Rich are. We may have a hard time defining them, but as Justice Potter Stewart wrote, "I know it when I see it."
This could be the time to start a new business or pursue something you always wanted to. I know this was a driver for starting my blog (in-between jobs then) and is now an alternative revenue stream for me. The thing is to not a job loss too personally and think outside of tbe box when looking for new opps.
"Money, pardon the expression, is like manure. It's not worth a thing unless it's spread around, encouraging young things to grow." -- Hello Dolly.
I think that pretty much sums it up. I would also add that if it doesn't get spread around, it starts to stink.
Oh I have so many thoughts about this post ranging from Communist China with its oppressive regime (which America keeps pumping money into), to the lower economic class in America with its "give me, the government owes me" attitude (not all are like that, but it's prevalent), to our illegal immigration issues.
So many thoughts but I'm not ambitious enough to type them all out. It would be a long read.
What is truly inside you comes out when you have excessive spendable income or when you don't have enough to pay the bills in spite of wise choices. One of the many reasons why you should be so picky about who you listen to regarding financial advice. Choose your mentors very carefully. Guard what you let your mind and heart take in. There are so many "gurus" out there, but many I can blast about because of their deeper beliefs/issues they may not talk directly about, but you can see in their writings and hear it in their chatter.
Guard your heart and mind and feed yourself properly.
Thanks for the tip! Just got DragonSlayer and Galaxy Quest for a grand total of $2.10 ....thanks again!
...but corporations. In America, corporations are the true evil. Whereas a rich person may choose not to share their wealth, many corporations actively steal wealth from others with absolutely no conscience. Insurance companies lobby Congress to give them full power to deny claims at will, credit card companies fight for their right to fleece their customers, agribusiness kills the individual farmer and banks destroy our economy and their shareholder's retirement by pursuing greed.
And of course it is the people, desperate to protect their wealth, that allow these corporations free reign. Not just the people in Congress who pass the laws or the shysters who wage wars for profit, but every single one of us that votes to keep corporations running the nation because we're terrified of losing even our own small little slice of the pie.
And therein lies the real truth. The ultimate evil has never been rich people even though some people may focus their frustrations on them. The ultimate evil is greed, whether it is a single person, unwilling to share their bounty with the less fortunate or a corporation seeking profit regardless of the cost.
Great post Sarah. In America, we put wealthy corporations above people. Just look at Enron.Anther example is how we measure GDP; for profit prisons, hospitals, and wars, the list goes on. For there to be less "evil" we must have more balance, somthing is terribly wrong.
If we define "evil" as against the societal norm, and we define a main tenet of society as the benefit of everyone in the societal group, then there is something inherently evil not about money itself, but the possession of wealth.
For in hoarding more than one needs to survive, one is placing himself above, as more important than, those members of society living in povery/starving, etc.
Or course, this may simply be the intersection of pro-growth capitalism with the relatively modern conception of civilization. However, I would say there's at least an implicit selfishness in choosing personal wealth (the amount of comfort you attain over survival) at the expense (given that the supply of currency, and hence wealth, at any given time is not unlimited and free) of many living in poverty. If there is an "evil," I believe it would come out of that fact.
In addition, Weber's protestant land ethic (especially the current, godless form) plays a decent part in this, especially in America. Supplemented with the relatively modern notion of "work" as having intrinsic value (instead of the means to an end), these two facts--both reactions to and products of American capitalism, a very peculiar brand of capitalism indeed--there is a hate that seems to seethe from both sides. From the top down, there's a "why should I pay for him not to work" sort of arguement, the one commonly used against welfare, etc. Coming from the bottom up, there's, firstly, a reaction to the prior point, which leads to a resentment of that upper class, and a feeling of constrained mobility, caused by the limitation of wealth enforced by the upper class (to say nothing of the fact that equal distribution would not avert this consequence).
Not trying to get all Marxist on everyone; I'm aware that probably has a little bit of a lean that way on it.
As for China, I don't know too much about the history of economic class conflict and such, but it would be an interesting project to contrast the American structure of "wealth hating" with the Chinese one, which I'm sure precedes Mao.
I believe that evilness or goodness is an inherent thing, not based on possession of money, however:
I have read in the newspapers about people who die because they were denied health coverage or treatments.
The wide extent of foreclosures in this credit crisis lends credibility to the concept of Predatory Lending. On a case by case basis, the individual is at fault but the banks were willing to suck customers dry with interest payments.
The search company that "does no evil", along with other American technology companies are helping to build the "great firewall of China."
Punitive damages for the Exxon Valdiz oil spill in Alaska were finally reduced from $2.5 billion to $507 million, and now Exxon is trying to weasel out of paying interest on this fine from the 1989 incident. By the way, while we are struggling at the pump, Exxon set a new record for quarterly profits of $11.5 billion.
No-bid contracts in Iraq are making billions producing either substandard or completely unusable construction. Halliburton even got away with serving our troops contaminated water in Iraq.
Tax breaks for the wealthy are widening gap between wealthy and poor individuals. And how about UBS, the Swiss bank under investigation for helping hide its clients money from the IRS. One way or another, the middle class is going to pay for this unsustainable deficit our government is running, not the wealthy.
Even Bill Gates, with his new charitable foundation, was head of Microsoft at the time the company was convicted of monopolistic practices that put others out of business. Personally, I think he's just trying to buy his way into heaven. Good luck, Bill.
I won't attack individuals just because their wealthy, but I won't defend them either.
Nora, the problem with all of your suggestions is that they're all mainstream and are aimed at the masses. If people are relying on a brochures they're picking up at tourism offices and convention bureaus, they're going to be going where everyone else is going and only getting the "touristic" experience.
I disagree with using the press information too. I look at this stuff all the time (I'm a travel writer) and generally it's only more mainstream suggestions presented as insider advice.
Wiki, ditto, is mainstream, aimed at everyone, and the sources aren't always reliable. I can't tell you how many times I've found inaccuracies in relation to destinations I know intimately.
And as for your state department warnings, most of the time they're wrong. They try to play it too safe. The FBI site is another that's full of inaccuracies, it's laughable.
As for tripadvisor... you can't trust everything you read... you need to make sure that the person who's opinion your trusting has the same kind of taste and preferences to you. And how do you know they know what they're talking about? How can a person who only goes on holidays for 2 weeks of the year 'know' travel? compared to say a professional travel writer who stays in hotels for 300 nights of the year. I'm sorry, but I'm going to go with the professional over the amateur for travel advice, just as I would for advice regarding my health, my car, my finance, etc.
And by saying this I'm not saying 'guidebooks rule'. They don't - always. They can often be out of date. The author who writes one may have vastly different standards of taste to another, may not be as thorough at updating as another, may have no attention to detail and no skills at discernment. With any guidebook - just like with tripadvisor - you need to make sure you 'click' with the author, that you like the same kind of restaurants, the same kind of hotels, the same sorts of sights, etc.
But it's that taste, strength of opinion and skills of discernment that I want - what you call "biases" - who really wants bland information? Who really wants to be sent to a place that every other tourist is sent to so that you're sitting in a restaurant that has no character and personality and is only full of other tourists?
That's why my main resource - as both a travel writer and a traveller - is always locals. However, not just any locals, but locals I can trust with knowledge and expertise. So if I want to find the best restaurants, I research one restaurant thoroughly and once there - if it meets my expectations - I chat to the waiters, restaurant manager and even the chef and find out where they like to eat on their day off. At a bar, I ask the bar tender, at a boutique I like, I ask the manager or shop assistant for recommendations for other stores like that one, at an art gallery I ask for tips for other galleries showing similar art, etc.
You're getting expert advice this way that's also free and at the same time you're getting to meet fascinating locals. Stay clear of the tourist offices and guidebooks, and simply talk to knowledgeable, friendly locals. And you'll make friends along the way!
Finding Nemo for only $3.76!
Thank you! :)
* Churches in Europe, especially Italy, are also full of exquisite art by some of the world's great masters
* Museums in many European and Asian countries also offer a free day or night, sometimes it's weekly, sometimes monthly. The Middle East many museums are still free or very cheap.
* European city tourist offices often offer special cards, eg. a Turin Card in Turin, Italy, which for a dirt-cheap price offers unlimited free public transport, free entry to some museums, discounts to others, etc.
* people-watching is still one of the cheapest activities and in Europe and the Middle East most cafes and bars have no problem with you sitting on one coffee or drink for hours while you watch the world go by.
* take a picnic compiled of food bought from a local market to a local park or by the sea, and you get to save money on a meal as well as do some people-watching and take in the local colour and action.
Provided I have room (I'm a travel writer so my bags are generally full of brochures, press kits, local books, etc), I always opt for things produced locally such as...
* a CD by a local musician or band a novel or book of short stories by a local author. Read or listened to on the trip, they can later become one of your most precious souvenirs, that - re-read and listened to for years to come or years later - will help bring back memories of the trip. Loan the book out or play the music to a friend or family member and they'll get a taste of your experiences. Books and music produced by local publishing houses and production companies are generally cheap too, especially in Asia and the Middle East.
* supermarket souvenirs - unusual packets of gum or candy from Asia or mint tea, orange blossom water or rose syrup from the Middle East; spicy relishes or preserves, or even vacuum packed meats and cheeses from Europe. Give them away to friends and family, enjoy them together or savour them alone.
I have a friend of mine that has a pool cleaning business. To help with the cleaning of the pool, he would squirt Dawn down the middle of the pool and all of the dirt, suntan lotion, etc. would move to the edges of the pool for easy clean up, and as an added bonus, it really makes the pools sparkle.
Thanks so much! I'm heading right over to use that code.
-Suz
I struggle with my desire to make money and my desire to be a good person. While I know that they are not, by any means, opposing poles they seem to be equated as such among most of my friends and family. I do worry about succeeding at making money and whether it will drive away friends and family. Thanks for the wonderful post about where these feelings come from, they do help me to understand.
-Suz
I use Grocerygame.com to pair coupons with sales (I'm too lazy to do it myself) and I've been able to drop my grocery budget to ~$100/month for two people.
I do, however, love your point about booze. I too find that the only times our budget doesn't make it is when we buy beer or booze. I simply don't, but that's not an option for many. However, we do buy booze and hang out at home with friends instead of going out to bars where it's much more expensive if we're feeling like drinking.
Thanks!
-Suz
I wonder, and am interested to see, what the effect of the government input of $$ into the housing market will look like in how it effects the house prices.
-Suz
Wow... I never knew that there were so many aspects of concessions that I didn't know about. Thanks so much to all of your commenters who have given me some great insights into the business.
-Suz
Thanks so much for the heads-up. I missed the sale, but I'll definately keep my eye on money saving mom!
-Suz
For new parents (or soon to be) try the service called freecycle.com which is an email list you sign up for in your local area. If you have something to get rid of, put it out to all the group members who then contact you if they want/need it. It's a great way to recycle the things you don't need anymore and usually they are good communities. I don't have kids, but there are ALWAYS gently used infant/child/maternity/etc. products of all shapes and kinds available.
-Suz
I know that tightening your belt is important when you loose or can't find a job, but sometimes spending a little bit of money on a good therapist can help you get your mental stamina back to approach looking for work. They can also help you determine what you can/might be good at doing. Many thearapists have sliding scales or you can ask about a local clinic that has sliding scales so that you can find therapy you can afford. It helps a lot with longer unemployment especially.
-Suz
I ordered two movies I've wanted to own for a long time, and a silly one for my wife. Grand total $2.66!
I think it depends on your experience with "the rich". If you're working a minimum wage job for some "entrepreneur" who breaks the law. Now, suppose you don't know these laws, because you don't have any "rich" lawyers as friends, and no "rich" union buddies. Then, yeah, you might start to think of all people with any level of affluence as fundamentally bad.
My experience wasn't that, but, as a micro-business operator. I've noticed this shitty trend of rich guys who don't pay their bills. Now, there are some who do, but, by and large, it's the ones who have a fairly large pile of cash who are the cheapskates and check-bouncers. The ones who are good at paying are the more "middle class" folks who work at their relatively nice jobs or do contract work. When I made appeals to their "good sides" to pay for services rendered, it was the trust funders who didn't pay.
Now, that, to me, is bad behavior. It borders on "evil".
So, lesson learned: don't trust rich people to pay on their debts. Some of them are thieves. They got rich by being thieves, and that's clearly how they stay rich. :-)
I live with my parents and this is what I took to work each day when we had roast! You can buy a fantastic roast for a phenominal price now, and there are tons of ways to serve it up each day! I love mine with roasted potatoes, but this saved me when I didn't have any money for lunches!