The Myth Of Upward Mobility

The Myth Of Upward Mobility – Second Thought

New video every Friday!

Citations and Further Reading:

Is the US a Meritocracy?

Statistics & Research on Upward Mobility

Meritocracy, Socialism, and Neoliberalism

Follow and Support Second Thought!
CashApp: $JTChapman

Watch More Second Thought:

About Second Thought:
Second Thought is a channel devoted to education and analysis of current events from a Leftist perspective. Welcome!

[NotJustBikes]

5:40 a few years ago, when I first heard that American schools are funded by local property tax, I didn't believe it. It seemed like such an obviously stupid policy that I refused to believe that it was true ... but it is (with very few exceptions).

Americans, you must understand: *this is not normal.* In pretty much every other country in the world, schools have some kind of equitable funding method. For example, the same amount of money per child throughout the whole country.

Some countries still have inequalities because wealthier families can spend more time with their children, and can afford tutors, etc., but this pales in comparison to local property taxing funding local schools. The best countries try to offset this by providing more help to children at schools in low income areas.

This is a *massive* generator of inequality in America, and it is insane that it has been allowed to go on for so long.

[lancevoltron]

"Opportunity itself has been comodified." I think that's the most succinct way I've been able to articulate what I see where people with money are able to get their kids better schooling, lunches, clothing, comforts, etc.

[tosreturns]

When I first moved to Hollywood to pursue my music career in 1986, a producer I met told me, "With the music industry, it doesn't matter how good you are. In fact, you don't have to be a good musician at all. It's all about who you know and who you blow."

In 2021, I'd say that, based on my experience, he was very accurate, and not just with the music business.

[thehandlesticks]

My grandparents did very well, coming from rural Indiana to upper middle class. Growing up I always thought they were just better than other people, but when I got older working all the time going nowhere I started to realize something wasn't right. People like my grandparents were born into one of the most prosperous times in US history and have the nerve to tell later generations we're not working hard enough. The 80's in particular destroyed the souls of a lot of good people. It made them callous and hostile toward anyone who is struggling.

[saliferousstudios]

My parents were well off. I'm talking multiple houses etc. They bought into this myth, and honestly made my life hell for it. I had learning disabilities and celiac, none of which they treated. I had to work 2x as hard to pass anything. They then blamed me for it and I was forced to work as young as I was able in a minimum wage job to teach me what my life would be like if I didn't fall in line. They also stole my wages to keep me from wasting the wages. When I hit college I got SO SICK. I thought I would die. Instead of helping me, guess what they did. Forced me to get a minimum wage to teach me a lesson. I passed out from pain several times at that job. I don't talk to them Can you guess why.

[ron.jordan]

“Let’s quickly go over liberalism” *cut to This Is Fine dog* just top notch editing there, chef’s kiss

[devinfaux]

I like a George Carlin line: "The reason they call it the 'American Dream' is 'cuz you have to be asleep to believe it."

[jd]

When this topic comes up I always use the real life example of April Ellison, a person that was born a black slave, and died as a black slaveowner.
There's always exceptions to ANY system, that doesn't mean we should be dumb enough to think those very rare exceptions are the rule.

[burnoutvista]

"I don't want a union to hold me back. I want to go out there and see what I'm worth in the free market, what I'm truly worth." An American friend said that. It's amazing how the narcissistic self-regard of American individualism pushes people to go against their own interests and even see that as The Truth

[snakesonthismondaytofriday]

A Yale professor once said (not verbatim) "people can imagine themselves crossing a puddle or a pond but can't imagine themselves crossing an ocean. When wealth inequality becomes an ocean people on one side start listening to anti-esablishemt rhetoric."

He also said "for those who are wealthy; they can segregate themselves and won't need to invest in programs or markets that the majority uses so the wealth is only distributed to the wealthy"

Edit: the Professor is Ian Shapiro

[Lincoln_Bio]

The origins of the concept of "meritocracy" added some rather mind blowing context that makes the decades of its unironic usage kind of terrifying. Thanks, I think.

[bakarimcdonald]

The Loughborough research – the first large-scale quantitative study into the phenomenon – found 71% of young single adults were living with their parents during their early 20s, and a majority (54%) were living at the parental home in their late 20s, falling to a third of those in their early 30s

[lapislazarus]

As a millennial, this is exactly why I chose to not have children. There's no frigging way I could give them a better life than I had. As an adult working a full time, permanent, municipal job, I still hardly break even every month with rent and utilities, insurance, food and gas and car payment/maintenance, etc, etc. And this is both me and my partner working. We don't go out to eat, neither of us are coffee drinkers, I buy one pair of shoes twice a year, clothes maybe every two years....
My parents are middle class who grew up working poor. This video kinda helped me understand it's not completely my fault. Unfortunately, in my generation, as we get older, we're starting to see diseases of dispair. Liver damage and failure, addiction and suicide, COPD and lung cancer. We kinda gave up and said, "fukitall." Let's go do shots.

[puellanivis]

In my Sociology 101 class, the professor once asked what the primary factor was in determining how much money a person would make in their life, and everyone was throwing out meritocratic ideals, and each of them were told they were wrong. Then I was like, “how much your parents make”, and he said, “that’s it.” :shrug: I was always pretty aware of the disparity of opportunities.

[CaraMarie]

As someone who is constantly praise for having "made it", i absolutely detest hearing people use me as an example of how hard work pays off. Yes, hard work does indeed pay off but I would love it if those people went and thanked my mother, whose absolutely back breaking and exhausting work allowed me only have to focus about going to school and nothing else. As it turns out, even when you live in a disgusting one bedroom apartment in "inner city neighborhood" and sleep in a bed with your mom and little brother, not having to worry about where to sleep, what to eat, or paying any bills really does have it's advantages. It also doesn't hurt that my mom finished college in our native country and made it clear (practically everyday) that she expected nothing less than a bachelor's (minimum) from us.

[KateeAngel]

There are even studies that show that brain forms differently in kids, who are raised in families with different income. The parts, which usually make good self-control possible, don't get properly formed if children experience malnutrition or lack of external stimulation in early childhood.

[noireisbest]

I'm happy there's a bit more humor in these videos. Sometimes it's hard to watch leftist content because of how depressing our world is.

[SeanLumly]

Agreed. 100%.

The comment on the term "meritocracy" is similar to the cliche of "pulling oneself up by one's bootstraps", and used in similar contexts.

[EthanEves]

the problem with the concept of meritocracy is who decides what's of merit. it's always the people in power, and they value what allowed them to succeed and what let's them hold power as holding the most merit. we live in a meritocracy, and maximizing wealth is the largest sign of merit, not creativity, intelligence, diligence, discovery, charity, etc. then they sell that back to the average person so they attach other positive attributes to them (genius, morality, divinity, etc)

meritocracy can't be the ideal because humans see what they do as individuals as good, otherwise we wouldn't do them, and whoever has power assigns that "good" as the standard by which all should be judged. it's easy to be great and to be deserving of your power and influence when you get to decide what's of merit.

[Fusilier]

"The United States had two choices to make: increase capitalism or democracy. Unfortunately, the neoliberals made the choice and increased capitalism, and rolled back democracy, that now capitalists have more power than the public." - Noam Chomsky.