Why I Am An Asshole
Since I already used the introduceyourself tag once, and its abuse appears to be an issue for some (probably rightly so) I'm going to slip this post in under some innocuous tags.
I turn 55 in July.
The career that I spent 25+ years learning and doing (actually fucking doing, not reading about in some textbook or being taught by someone who read about it in a textbook), that I really liked, and was damned good at isn't available to me anymore.
Lack of a college degree and turning 55 in July probably hasn't helped (I know there are Laws against age discrimination) but the lack of manufacturing and industry in America is more likely the biggest contributor.
I spent my entire adult life believing the wage slave bullshit:
Work hard and ye shall be rewarded in kind.
Employees are our greatest asset.
Be entrepreneurial, treat this company like it's your own.
Your work is excellent, we just need to work on your "culture".
We VALUE your input.
Blah, blah, blah.
My wife graduated with honors from a top 10 Law School in the country and went to work at a "Family Oriented" Law firm that let her go right after giving birth to our son. (Yes, there are Laws against that kind of discrimination too.)
"Your work is impeccable, you're just not a good fit."
We cashed out my pension and 401k trying to pay bills.
Guess what? The IRS doesn't give a flying fuck why you took those disbursements before you were 62-1/2.
On Christmas Eve of 2012 I turned over the keys to our modest house to foreclosure and we (me, my wife, our 2 kids and 3 dogs) spent 16 months without a mailing address, including a fun-filled 2 months in an extended stay hotel room while we boarded the dogs (no, there wasn't a pool, exercise room or sauna).
Luckily the kids were still young enough to buy the "Let's treat it like an adventure" speech, at least for the first few months.
America, the land of the free, where all you have to do is go to school, get good grades and work hard.
Nobody ever mentioned kiss ass, screw your co-workers, curry favor with "important" people, make empty promises you have no intention of keeping and treat other people like a commodity.
There's nothing I can do about those things, they're in my past.
There's nothing I can do about scumbag politicians who start wars and displace or outright kill millions of people to satisfy their insatiable thirst for power and money.
I can't bring jobs back to America.
What can I do?
I can be an asshole.
Not all the time and not to everyone.
You probably wouldn't notice me except to thank me for holding the door for you.
Or you might be surprised when I genuinely say something like, "Thanks, you have a good day too."
But you'll think I'm an asshole when I demand you do your job. Or point out that you make a really good living without having to work for it. Or that your pension, paid for with public money, will likely continue paying you for more years than you actually worked.
You might think I'm an asshole when I hound you because you made a mistake, and rather than own up to it and at least try to correct it, you try to ignore it or cover it up.
You might think I'm an asshole when I insist that rules or laws should apply equally to everyone.
You'll probably think I'm an asshole when I make you wait your turn, just like the rest of us.
You'll think I'm an asshole when I refuse to let you make the decisions as to how I and my children live.
Gee, looking at this list makes me realize, I'm probably "RUDE" too.
I can live with that.
You seem like a realist not an asshole.
Oddly enough, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have gotten this many positive comments from the FB. I've been slowly but surely un-following people there and am about ready to just not sign in any more.
I've heard your story, unfortunately, too many times from too many different people. You are not alone in this experience. I think your post was spot on and honest. Especially when you said that people are treated as a commodity.
The "system" is rigged from the get go. Following the American Dream ends up being a nightmare for most. Thanks for the post.
Thanks for letting me vent.
No problemo
We are on the downswing of the "good" side of being a human commodity. I've been an asshole all my life, and I'm a true believer in fake it 'till you make it. The SLAVE part of wage slave is becoming all too evident these days. You cannot be a good person and succeed in the system anymore. The system is morallly bankrupt.
I propose a new movement, REALISTS.
I think getting back to a natural, agrarian based lifestyle is the way to go. We work outside the home to put a roof over our heads and food on the table. What if your home was paid for and your job was to grow/raise your own food? No need to leave the house for 40-60 hours every week. No longer a slave but free. That's the draw if homesteading for me and so many others.
I hear your pain @theblindsquirl. I used to be a tool & die maker by trade, and since 2008 it has been a really tough sled! I did college (for the trade) and with the manufacturing that is left they treat you and pay you like dog shit. I've moved more times than Pablo Escobar. lol
Keep fighting and keep ploughing ahead is what I do. Every dime I don't pay in tax makes me happy knowing I'm starving the beast. Instead of despair I find great satisfaction in knowing 'I'm sticking it to the man!'.
Peace out.
And we moved 9 times in 16 months.
Hopefully we've got that out of our system now.
I hope so too brother. Wishing you and your fam all the best!
Cheers.
And best wishes to you.
Thanks Alex.
Dec. 8, 2008 was my last day.
I did some contract design work for a while but that's gone now too.
My pay peaked in 1999, lower wages after that.
Thanks for sharing your version of the American Dream status. I believe this American dream was a true and very reasonable one to wish and follow after, but, as we all know by now, it has become a flushed-down dream. It's because the people who run this game (the KM) have not a very healthy mentality to be trusted at all. Greed has overtaken humans... http://www.agendadocumentary.com/
Thanks, I guess I'm still dumb enough to follow my own moral and ethical codes, regardless.
Sorry for what you've been through, but it seems like you are tougher than nails. I agree and where I live now, it seems like the work ethic is shit, which is why I come out as sort of a knight in shining armor just for doing my job (the way it should be done!) Followed and upvoted!
Thanks.
It's really the hypocrisy that bothers me the most.
I could respect outright thievery and imperialism, but have the balls to own up to it.
This is really impressive , I thought this annoyance felt only me
You certainly don't seem like an asshole based on this post. You boarded your dogs while you were without a home. That speaks volumes. Some people aren't very kind to their pets, but you are.
You care, you're fair, you have standards, you see the wrongs and you want to right them, you're trying to make your way on this third density planet where we all get sucked into the matrix and then have to work our way out when we wake up.... You're intelligent and sensitive. That's what I gather form your post.
Thank you.
We also made it a point to go and see the dogs at least once a day.
That's awesome. We have 3 dogs and 4 cats and they're definitely part of the family. I know that I will always have something in common with people who treat their pets with love and kindness.
I went through a pretty rough time about 4 years ago, a dark night of the soul type of thing. I did not want to be here, and often referred to living here on this plant, in this country, etc...as living in a shit hole. My mantra back then was, "I hate this shit hole." Then, slowly I was able to snap out of it. I was guided to meaningful writings that taught me a lot. So, I can see this matrix in which we live very clearly, and I try not to get involved in it as much as possible.
I totally understand where you're coming from. It gets lonely and maddening when everyone around you is so deeply caught up in the matrix. It's good when we can connect with like-minded people! Thank you, again, for your post and reply.
I'm an asshole also.
All these memories will be lost in time like tears in the rain.
Thoughts?
cool
Wow!!! I mean you have been through alot my friend. It seems to have made you a stand alone family which is a good thing. These United States Of America are not what they used to be. We are in a very troubling times right now. And our up and coming generation does not seem to have a , work ethic , humble moral and a self intitlement that will make you sick to your stomach. Upvoted, resteemed and followed.
Thanks. I never would have posted something like this on FB.
We all bought into a rigged game.