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Social class and family your thoughts?
- Thread starter swilly
- Start date
hmmm....I learn something new everyday.
I can't grasp how people are dumb enought to believe in this crap. My Uncle Billy is all about trying to climb the social ladder and his kids are even worse.
A couple of times in London this lady came into my shop and was bossing the other staff around and throwing her two cents in and making demands about the music and the selection and our appearences, etc. After about the third time she did this I couldn't bite my tongue any longer (fuck the customer service) and I told her off and I was all "who the hell do you think you are, blah, blah, blah?" and she was like "I'm the Lady of something or other and you better accord me the respect i'm due........"
"Is that right?? Fuck off and get out of my store you cow!"
Jack, this english guy I worked with was freaking out that i was speaking to someone of her class like that. It wasn' the actual swearing or the rudeness or anything it was just the fact that i had the audacity to mouth off to someone of her "calibre".
Jeez, that kind of thing only makes a difference if you let it make a difference, her shit stinks just like everybody else's.
Stew
Dirty Girl
TRIBE Member
you cant escape your past, her shitty family will haunt her and screw up her life for years to come Im sure!!
green_souljah
TRIBE Member
If I got rich I would STILL thank the guy that pumps my gas, thank the cute little girl at the Tim Horton's drive through.
What you do between 9-5 holds no bearing on what I think of you as a person.
I either like you or I don't, simple as that, no matter what your occupation.
Everybody I am friend's with is from a different walk of life, whether it be on welfare or sitting pretty in Markham, I like them all for different reasons.
I never even knew about class distinction until I was 22 and dated a girl who's dad was a goddamn limey idiot (no offence to her though, she was a fun girl and did not adhere to her father's ways)
Meh..
Whatever.
I now have beer to drink
What you do between 9-5 holds no bearing on what I think of you as a person.
I either like you or I don't, simple as that, no matter what your occupation.
Everybody I am friend's with is from a different walk of life, whether it be on welfare or sitting pretty in Markham, I like them all for different reasons.
I never even knew about class distinction until I was 22 and dated a girl who's dad was a goddamn limey idiot (no offence to her though, she was a fun girl and did not adhere to her father's ways)
Meh..
Whatever.
I now have beer to drink
How so?
I've been to enough places to know what i'm talking about except for the southern US and I still have to do a bit of research before i'm willing to fully accept Jane's communist slant on things.
I mean canada does have "Blue Bloods" with people like the Reichmans and the Bronfmans and places like the Granite Club and what not. But these places are not entirely exclusive to old money and the esteemed educational institutions of Canada are accessible to all those who qualify. Somebody with enough zeal, drive and determination can become anything they want to be in North America and they can be treated as equals among those who have a long history in Canada.
Successful people can acheive anything they want in North America if they are willing to put in the time and effort. This isn't the case in Europe. You can have all of the money and intelligence in the world but if you're family is from Hackney there isn't a chance in hell that your kids will be going to Eton or moving onto a royal estate, in all likely hood these people will be living in Essex driving their Jags out there.
If an immigrant from Bangladesh who came to Canada with just the shirt on his back manages to grow his business to the point where he can afford to move into Rosedale what's to stop him?
What's to stop him from putting his kid into Upper Canada College?
In Canada there may be old money and families with prestigous lineges but they are merely figure heads and don't have the kind of upper class influence of something like the House of Lords does, which is they epitome of a social class structure.
Stew
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green_souljah
TRIBE Member
Well put.
In Canada, House of Lords is a stripclub.
green_souljah
TRIBE Member
i really though would like to know what is meant my "trash"
Does that mean living in a trailer peeing out the door and hitting on your cousin?
Or does that mean someone who has a good job who drinks beer and swears a lot and isn't necessarily liberal minded?
I guess it's subjective. There are some bang on obvious things that pretty much anyone would consider classy or trashy - but when you start looking at little details - it'll get harder to generalize.
The point is, that it all comes down to conducting yourself in a respectable manner.
The point is, that it all comes down to conducting yourself in a respectable manner.
rubytuesday
TRIBE Member
My family is considered trashy due to the fact that my mom is on social assistance and has seven children, with three different men. She has chosen not to marry.Ppl are amazed that my mom reads a lot and writes poetry and can carry intelligent conversations. I have middle class friends who say knowing me has made them view welfare and poverty differently.
I think your friend will be fine, and anyone willing to overlook her due to her family doesn't deserve her. My bf was a bit taken aback at first, but we have been together for 4 years and he loves and respects my family. It is hard for me at times, like when I spend christmas at home and then go to his (new) house for dinner and see the difference in quality of life. I feel guilty a lot, but hopefully once I am working I will be able to contribute more.
I don't think she will have to abandon her family as others have said in order to move up. I would hate myself if I ever did that. And being classy is much different from being born into a class.
I am also at university and doing quite well. I don't try to advertise my background, but I think ppl who know respect that I have had to work a bit harder to get where I am. I am grateful for my experiences, it's made me who I am.
I think your friend will be fine, and anyone willing to overlook her due to her family doesn't deserve her. My bf was a bit taken aback at first, but we have been together for 4 years and he loves and respects my family. It is hard for me at times, like when I spend christmas at home and then go to his (new) house for dinner and see the difference in quality of life. I feel guilty a lot, but hopefully once I am working I will be able to contribute more.
I don't think she will have to abandon her family as others have said in order to move up. I would hate myself if I ever did that. And being classy is much different from being born into a class.
I am also at university and doing quite well. I don't try to advertise my background, but I think ppl who know respect that I have had to work a bit harder to get where I am. I am grateful for my experiences, it's made me who I am.
windowlicker
TRIBE Member
Though not openly acknowledged, certain areas within the southern states operate under a type of feudal system (where the rich grow richer and the poor poorer).
It is generally taken for granted that blacks, hispanics and low class whites hold menial, blue collar positions in the workforce while genteel minimal skill positions such as retail jobs are reserved for the more privileged high school and university kids. When a relative (who attends a southern school) questioned a classmate about this, she was asked with amazement who then worked at McDonalds in Canada. When she was told that all types worked there, she did not believe it.)
Savannah, for example, is known for its non-unionized factories. People (chiefly blacks) work lengthy shifts at below minimum wage and are unable to take the time to form unions because they have families to feed (and thus can only keep working). As I said earlier- they grow poorer while the industrialists grow richer.
Its also pretty much a given that there is a distinct aristocracy among southerners (old money, good families, etc)- this in addition to accepted social stereotypes pretty much fuels their 'class system'.
Janiecakes:
I doubt I would be surprised.
Maybe life is not as complicated as you think it is, and perhaps my experience is not as objective as I like to think it is.
Physix:
Success is much harder to reach for those who have little tools, nevertheless it's possible. In my mind, at this moment, in the Canada that I have experienced, there are no economic victims, no one is stopping anyone from success.
I would like to state an economic principle that has sociological implications. There will always be a filtering principle, the smartest and most adept to get what they want from people and their surroundings will succed. If you have 100 very intelligent people(intelligence can be quantified, remember all the test your wrote), there will be 50 that fall below the other fify in intelligence, from the top 50 there will be 20 that just have qualities that make them stand out, from that 20 there will be 2 that will have even more intangible qualites that make them the leaders or that the rest will defer to. Keep in mind that all 100 people are very intelligent. So when looking at our current social structure it's not to say that the lower social class in not intelligent, but it's that the higher class is more intelligent. Despite our extremely complicate system, it still boils down to basic socialization, who carries the biggest stick.
Now this might seem like a bleak look at our economic/social system, but remeber that the one with the biggest stick, is the strongest, most capable of wielding it.
One of the reasons that I can argue with such boldness is that everyone wants money, everyone want's success, everyone wants to live the greatest life possible. Now, I leave room for the exceptions in my current value system, but from what I understand it's a very slight minority that does not wish to prosper.
I doubt I would be surprised.
Maybe life is not as complicated as you think it is, and perhaps my experience is not as objective as I like to think it is.
Physix:
Success is much harder to reach for those who have little tools, nevertheless it's possible. In my mind, at this moment, in the Canada that I have experienced, there are no economic victims, no one is stopping anyone from success.
I would like to state an economic principle that has sociological implications. There will always be a filtering principle, the smartest and most adept to get what they want from people and their surroundings will succed. If you have 100 very intelligent people(intelligence can be quantified, remember all the test your wrote), there will be 50 that fall below the other fify in intelligence, from the top 50 there will be 20 that just have qualities that make them stand out, from that 20 there will be 2 that will have even more intangible qualites that make them the leaders or that the rest will defer to. Keep in mind that all 100 people are very intelligent. So when looking at our current social structure it's not to say that the lower social class in not intelligent, but it's that the higher class is more intelligent. Despite our extremely complicate system, it still boils down to basic socialization, who carries the biggest stick.
Now this might seem like a bleak look at our economic/social system, but remeber that the one with the biggest stick, is the strongest, most capable of wielding it.
One of the reasons that I can argue with such boldness is that everyone wants money, everyone want's success, everyone wants to live the greatest life possible. Now, I leave room for the exceptions in my current value system, but from what I understand it's a very slight minority that does not wish to prosper.
I have created the possibility to become above average, which is something that I don't believe the average reaches. This is a hard question, I have a very deep understanding of myself and sociology, but there are other fields that I'm only beginning to grasp. So i'll put it this way, I believe my potential to be above average.