Is there a Middle Class?
During my research on, “What is the MIDDLE CLASS?” The Left and Right wing pendants speak about the Middle Class as if they actually exist. Once the deregulation of Wall Street occurred during the Reagan, Clinton and G.W. Bushes presidencies’, the ground work was set for the destruction of America as we 40-something’s remembered it. Many distractions have been put in place to start the demise of the WORKING CLASS not the middle class. Read the following statement please and let me know if you agree or dismiss my entire thought. Remember also there are radio host, all news media outlets designed to give the average person the believe they can achieve the “American Dream.” I’m sorry to say it is a dream. Enjoy the read.
Today, the only class which, in its ‘subjective’ self perception, explicitly conceives of an presents itself as a class is the notorious ‘middle class’ which is precisely the ‘non-class’: the allegedly hard-working middle layer of society which define themselves not only by their allegiance to firm moral and religious standards, but by a double opposition to both ‘extremes’ of the social space – non-patriotic ‘deracinated’ rich corporations on the one side; poor excluded immigrants and ghetto-members on the other. The ‘middle class’ grounds its identity in the exclusion of both extremes which, when they are directly counterpoised, give us ‘class rivalry’ at its purest. The constitutive lie of the very notion of the ‘middle class’ is thus the same as that of the true Party line between the two extremes of ‘right-wing deviation’ and left-wing deviation’ in Capitalism: the ‘middle class’ is, in its very ‘real’ existence, the embodied lie, the denial of rivalry – in psychoanalytic terms, the ‘middle class’ is a fetish, the impossible intersection of left and right which, by expelling both poles of the rivalry into the position of antisocial ‘extremes’ which corrode the healthy social body (multinational corporations and intruding immigrants), presents itself as the neutral common ground of Society. In other words, the ‘middle class’ is the very form of the disavowal of the fact that ‘Society doesn’t exist’ – in it, Society does exist. This also embodies the rate of incardination of adults and juveniles alike. When an actual study is conducted we will discovered the disproportionate rate of incarceration by the countries poor and minorities. Those who create the policies/laws create a devastating situations within all cities, by removing employment, destroying families by incarcerating the male population of poor and minorities which in turn creates a vast number of young men and women being educated in the very streets cities, counties, states and government refuse to clean up. With the corrections being the next bastion of capitalism the owners have to make money. Therefore, a business is created to turn a profit. These private correction facilities need bodies, the courts send the poor and minorities to fill them up. These people who are left to their own devices to represent themselves due to the fact public attorney’s are overwhelmed with cases and it’s easier to clear their docket by encouraging the offender to take a plea. Once this happens the Jim Crow laws of old are enacted. These offenders can not vote, can find only service industry jobs, assembly line work all for relative penny’s. they have no health care, no way to provide for their families. Many of the richest families in America obtained their wealth through illegal or immoral business (bootlegging and slavery). These are the families where many of their children’s children are running our country. Why does it take millions to be able to serve your country in the capacity of a Senator or Congressmen/women. Does anyone know an average person who would be able to compete for a position for the people and by the people? Can anyone say the people in Washington actually have the Manager at your local Wendy’s in mind when they pass laws?
Financial deregulation destroyed the notion in which the American Dream can ever be achieved.
I’m jus sayin!
First off, I can leave a comment by myself THANK YOU
2ndly, while I would agree with what you have said–I would also add that the system WE have created (or by chance, LET other people create) is nothing BUT flawed. This fact raises the question, what then are we supposed to do? And unfortunately, the only answer that I can think of at this moment is to blow every jail, every prison, and private correctional facility up, with all offenders inside–and start over…as you would say “I’m just sayin’!”
Hmmmmmm!
Middle Class – Not For Me!
The achievement of the American Dream (Middle Class) depends greatly on ones willingness to assimilate. The Majority has it under control and also plays a major role in the accomplishment of such an allusive prize. Allusive it is for no matter how hard you work it will stay just steps ahead of you. Also, you will be constantly reminded that you are not worthy regardless the effort.
The proverbial carrot is dangled before all who are willing to forsake their ethnicity and join the ranks of the Majority. Why? It is more than obvious that “they” control majority of the wealth in this country, and they do all they can to ensure we realize this. You can turn from magazine to TV to movies and, yes, even the news and see that it is the Majority who are the experts at realizing the American Dream. Make no mistake these inferences are also bought into by the not-so-successful Majority for they truly believe that this is their destiny as well. Where is the proof?
The proof lies in the fact that the Minority representation at the Middle Class level remains well below the 1% mark. These people have forsaken family, friends, and community to achieve this so-called good life only to find they are alone. They are alone because there are few that look like them and even fewer that trust them because all are well aware of what it takes to get and stay at this level. Yet, thousands embark on this journey every day. College students are motivated to push on through the toughest of times fueled by the dream that they will be able to have everything they desire. The fact of the matter is that only few will get there and the price they pay will be high.
Here’s a crude yet realistic example, there are 16 NFL teams with approximately 45 players on each. These players average a three year career and earn somewhere around $1.5M – $2M during this period. Yet in still playing professional football remains the dream of many boys and even a few girls. They work long and hard. Forsake their childhood, family, friends, and health for the game. Some are fortunate to make it to college while most realize no matter how hard they work they just don’t have what it takes. Those who go on to college quickly discover that their counterparts are bigger, better, and hungrier. Those who survive the four years (5yrs for some) of college are now presented with the politics of the draft. It’s pointed out that it is not so much what you did but who knows you did it. And, are they in a position to do something for you. Correction…can you compensate them for what they are in a position to do for you! Results are not a part of the equation. Remember, you gave up everything to be a NFL player. You acted like them, lived with them, and did everything they did, but you were never one them nor where you able to become one. Get the picture!
This example of a NFL wannabee is very similar to many Middle Class wannabees. For me its simple, a Minority must be willing to give up self, thrive on superficial relationships, and accept materialism as their only companion to obtain Middle Class. A price I am not willing to pay!
I can agree with your comment to an extent. There is no “middle class” it’s fiction. Those of us who embark on the journey of a career in something we enjoy doing does require sacrafice. However, as the law of physics state, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. The asians have the ying and the yang. Both simply state there must be balance. There is no balance between the rich and poor in this country. Manipulation and “getting paid” is what rules this country. The sad thing is many of the families who are able to pay their bills on time and purchase their wants are so confused they actually believe they are part of the 1%. This is where the disconnect is. If they realized they are the very people the top 1% dispise and want to control becasue they are the worker bees in this society things would drastically change. I cannot believe how ignorant people can be in a group. Each person has their own thoughts and actions but when an eliment within the group is the aggressor people refuse to stand up and say no. They assimilate into society and the status quo becomes the norm. Throughout this country’s history it has taken a great event to evoke change, from slavery to civil rights. After the sixties people have stopped pushing for equality. If I had the statistics handy, wealth in this country has not changed since the seventies. The thing which has changed is the top 1% have become even more wealthy and the median pay for the worker bees has stayed the same. The areas where poor families need the most assistance is medial and career training. Our coorperations run the country and it’s all about profit. I quote Malcolm X from the early sixties, “It is impossible for capitalism to survive, primarily because the system of capitalism needs some blood to suck. Capitalism used to be like an eagle, but now it’s more like a vulture. It used to be strong enough to go and suck anybody’s blood whether they were strong or not. But now it has become more cowardly, like the vulture, and it can only suck the blood of the helpless. As the nations of the world free themselves, the capitalism has less victims, less to suck, and it becomes weaker and weaker. It’s only a matter of time in my opinion before it will collapse completely.” Now think about that quote and think about what is happening today. Free Market = wealth to a small percentage of a country.
@Marcus – I see your main point and really like your use of the NFL career potential analogy in your post. However, I don’t agree that a minority person has to “sell out” to make a “middle class” living in the USA.
Yes, a minority person’s “row to hoe” is lots different than most “other folks” have it, but it can still be hoed successfully WITHOUT any of the “step-and-fetch-it” or “uncle-tom-like” compromises that you insinuate every minority person who is successful has had to make.
There are honorable ways to succeed and all seem to start with getting a good education, whether that is in college or from a good trade school, or both. The military provided a 20+ year career for me and many other hard working genuine brothers and sisters whom you would probably call “middle class” or close to it.
Your comment about the dynamic of the realities of a career in the NFL should be the thing that alarms any minority, especially us “black folks” in the USA.
Sports are cool, both my brother and niece were Division I Scholarship Athletes and name brand schools. I even have a cousin who was in the NFL too. So, I know what a world-class athlete looks and acts like. But, for most of us, none of those games should be taken as serious as most minorities, especially blacks, seem to toward a living.
When working to be “good” at reading, writing and arithmetic is as esteemed by everyone in the family as sports are, then all children actually succeed – regardless of ethnic group.
And, most of these kids don’t forget who they are either… they just have different priorities than most less successful peers who are not making learning these essential “life skills” a priority.
It is all about choices and taking responsibility for our actions.
Most people can’t make a Division II college team, much less go to a major program that leads to a professional sports career. Unless the kid is in the 1% that is a “LaBron James” or “Michael Jordan” or “Bo Jackson” (and we know who those kids are by T-Ball age at 6 years old) – it makes sense to forget thinking seriously about sports as a career choice and do homework instead.
That type of choice usually always results in getting the person who makes it a living wage job that can lead to a career, and a career usually pays well enough to allow the person to be considered “middle class” – whatever that is…
AND, it is possible for a minority person to do all of that without having to compromise anything in the process of living a fulfilling life.
AND, simultaneously, a life that can serve in the long term toward being a positive factor in a community among others, besides tending to one’s own self and family interests. I know these things to be true!
But, it this is still just my $0.02…
Peace, Cb
“It was once said that the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the [disabled].”
Hubert H. Humphrey
I don’t believe a middle class exists. I see two classes. We have those that have and those that have not, period. We cannot blame ‘the system’ for where we are today because we all have choice. That in my mind has dictated where I am in my life. Yes there has been and still are economical, educational and workplace discrimination BUT that should not stop someone from reaching his/her life goals. It may take longer to get there, but it is possible. We are living in a generation where there are excuses, no one seems to want to take responsibility for where they are today. I will call it the “first Adam nature”. The same response that God got when he asked Adam and Eve why they disobeyed him. Instead of telling him because they wanted to – they blamed someone outside of themselves. I’m just sayin’…
I would agree…there is no “middle class.” That’s been the fact since BC! Even when Christ came there were the Jews and the Gentiles…oh and the ROMANS (that’s our politicians LOL). If you were a Jew, you were a “Have” and a Gentile, a “have not.” But Christ came and gave His life that whosoever believeth in Him might not perish, but HAVE everlasting LIFE. So, I guess LIFE does not boil down to what you have, but WHO you have, who you believe in, and who you serve. If you measure life and success based on what the world sees as beautiful, you will miss beauty indeed. All you have to do is read the newspaper, watch msnbc news, sign on to the internet, or sit through CSPAN and you will know that rich folks don’t have it so well. So Pray for the “rich” and the poor alike,, for the Word of the Lord, which is I AM…has always existed, then…now…and always says, “The POOR shall inherit the earth.” If you have Jesus, You are blessed and highly favored. This life is, but test and only lasts a moment…choose ye this day whom you shall serve.
I’M JUS SAYIN!
I truly appreciate the comments on this subject, but let us look at this logically. Since slavery when Christianity was introduced to our ancestors. Our ancestors were not Christians. Don’t take my word for it please do your research. Thank you Sheena for bringing up the Romans, they are responsible for the foundation of modern day propaganda. When they invaded the continent of Africa (the name comes from a province called Afrik, after the Romans concurred the northern part of the continent), they had every person in their society greet on another with the phrase, “Good morning Roman Citizen Carthage must fall!” Once the act of war was completed they chose to have Christianity the religion of the empire. Constantine began to rewrite history, by removing Moors from history. Along with the change the New Testament is written by scribes who were subsequently put to death after the completion. The story of a child in a manger comes from Moorish folk lore. The New Testament was created before the physical being of Christ was put into play (I say Christ, because there is no letter in the Hebrew language for “J”). The pope commissioned Michael Angelo to paint a portrait of Christ and he used his brother in law as the model. What’s wrong with that picture?
We subscribe to the teachings of a people who do not want us to ever be their equal. We forget less than 45 years ago we were not even considered citizens. All white people are not at fault, but those whit people who know it’s wrong to view us as less than equal are just as wrong for not saying anything. Why is it the Barbie doll test of the 60’s still has the same results today? Who taught us to hate the way our hair is, to hate our lips, to hate our shapes, to hate our color and to hate our own kind?
I love you as I love my sister Mary Jane who blogged right before you, but there is no way I could subscribe, read or live my life according to a book written by people who want to keep me “in my place” so to speak. Look at our prison system. Our men have been subjected to hell on earth. They are burdened with felonies which nine out of ten times will not allow them to become gainfully employed with a good paying job. They are subjected to remedial labor or service jobs. Sounds like the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s to me. These were the times when Pullman Porter, janitors and laborers on construction sites were the jobs we were able to get. Not to forget the waiter, hotel cleaner, etc.
We have been perverted to think we have achieved great things in this society, yet we are still in the same place. I’ll leave with this….please go to youtube and pull up Marvin Gaye’s song, “What’s goin on” then reply. By the way thank you for replying.
I’m jus sayin
Ahhhh, serving Christ doesn’t keep you in your place. It teaches you that gain doesn’t mean that you are godly. His teaches when followed help you live a quiet and peaceable life. He doesn’t require me to grab a sign and picket against an establishment that I do not agree with or picketing funerals of men and women who have given their lives for our country because I do not agree with what they do behind close doors. What people did with the Word of God through their own manipulations cannot be blamed on Jesus Christ… The Word of God is still that – the Word of God. It still boggles my mind how God’s creation can actually believe that the Creator of Heaven and Earth – everything in between; cannot have a pure Word here in the Earth he created… Arrogance and/or ignorance is what keeps coming to mind. “Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it why have you made me thus?” I’m just saying…
Oops, typo – should read “His teachings when followed…”