The idea that “Anyone can succeed through hard work and individual effort” has the dark corollary that “Lack of success and prosperity is your fault and shows a deficiency in your character”
Basically, if you don’t succeed it is your fault and no one should feel bad about your situation or feel compelled to help you in any way.
To put it bluntly “I got mine and fuck you if you don’t”
We have legions of “losers” who take that in internally and blame themselves, and legions of Americans struggling to survive themselves who revel in the schadenfreude of being able to look down on the homeless, refusing to look up at their shared enemies in the little club who put both of them in their dire situations of slightly varying degree.
Basically “Whether or not I got mine, fuck you.”
A race to the bottom. The losers, aka the majority, are so busy looking for bigger losers to punch down, we won’t even consider solidarity in punching up at the wealthy interests intentionally propagating this for profit inhumanity.
Yes.
The idea that “Anyone can succeed through hard work and individual effort” has the dark corollary that “Lack of success and prosperity is your fault and shows a deficiency in your character”
Basically, if you don’t succeed it is your fault and no one should feel bad about your situation or feel compelled to help you in any way.
To put it bluntly “I got mine and fuck you if you don’t”
You are spot on, except it’s even worse.
We have legions of “losers” who take that in internally and blame themselves, and legions of Americans struggling to survive themselves who revel in the schadenfreude of being able to look down on the homeless, refusing to look up at their shared enemies in the little club who put both of them in their dire situations of slightly varying degree.
Basically “Whether or not I got mine, fuck you.”
A race to the bottom. The losers, aka the majority, are so busy looking for bigger losers to punch down, we won’t even consider solidarity in punching up at the wealthy interests intentionally propagating this for profit inhumanity.