Whatever happened to Marx’ “ownership of the means of production” definition? Also, even beyond that, it makes sense to have an understanding that the precarity felt by an upper middle class person is not remotely the same kind of daily struggle faced by a lower middle class person. Not being able to afford property vs. not being able to afford food.
Ultimately it is important to recognize that all humans in the capitalist system are recruited to participate in an extractive, antihumanist global process.
EatATaco@lemm.ee 8 months ago
This is kind of silly.
I’m definitely working class, like I couldn’t stop working and coast the rest of my life on what I have saved now without really cutting everything to the bone.
However, I max out my 401k and iras every year. We also put enough money aside that our two kids will probably need to take out little to no money for their college educations. We are contemplating how many hundreds of thousands of dollars we can afford for a house renovation, and we can still take two comfortable vacations per year.
I’m very comfortable and know I am very lucky.
Which is why it’s absurd to put me in the same category as the people who literally have cut everything to the bone and still worry about making ends meet at the end of the month. While we should still team up against the owning class, our financial situations are drastically different and shouldn’t be treated as the same because that would do a huge disservice to their actual relative situation.
marcos@lemmy.world 8 months ago
Yep. It’s almost like different words with different meanings are useful to express different thoughts on different contexts.
Prunebutt@slrpnk.net 8 months ago
ouch
gataloca@lemmy.world 8 months ago
Sure you can argue that your financial situation is a bit better, but the power dynamics between yourself and owners is still the same regardless if you make a lot or a little and more importantly, salaries change. When your job isn’t considered competitive anymore you’ll be in the same boat or if you get laid off or you get sick, etc.
EatATaco@lemm.ee 8 months ago
Sure, which is why I think we should still team up. However, that doesn’t change the fact that we are in such ridiculously different positions that it’s nonsense to try and pretend these are “made up” just to keep people down. Like my tax rate is higher, and it should be. There are very obvious reason these have different terms, and “it’s just conspiracy by the man to keep us down!” without a shred of evidence to back it up is just, well, mindless conspiracy shit.
lledrtx@lemmy.world 8 months ago
What line of work are you and your spouse in, if you don’t mind me asking?
EatATaco@lemm.ee 8 months ago
Tech and health care
Prunebutt@slrpnk.net 8 months ago
You must have heard of “None of us is free, until we’re all free!” before, right?
EatATaco@lemm.ee 8 months ago
I’ll use the example used a lot during COVID: we’re all in the same storm, but we’re not all in the same boat.
Ainiriand@lemmy.world 8 months ago
While there is a lot of sense on what you say, I prefer the class distinctions made by Karl Marx because it does not factor economic differences between workers. He defined classes in 3 groups, independently of their money. It only depends on their relation to the means of production. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxian_class_theory
Chakravanti@sh.itjust.works 8 months ago
You’re an idiot to think that money defines you. You might think you’re not a narcissistic asshole but you are. Regardless if that’s all projection from the “rich” class. You’re their narcissistic pet boy.
EatATaco@lemm.ee 8 months ago
I don’t know you well enough to make an actual determination, but I’d be willing to bet that this is quite the projection.