Thus far, we've told stories about our interactions with the government and considered the condition of anarchy. There seemed to be a general sense of agreement among the participants: the government certainly has its low points, but compared to a condition of anarchy, the presence of some governing agencies is acceptable. Over the course of this semester, we will look at a variety of different ways that government can take shape.
In this post, let's talk about economic classes.
The notion of economic classes (e.g. worker class, middle class, capitalist class) emerged during the 18th and 19th centuries in Europe. It quickly migrated to the USA, but the notion of class politics only briefly became an important topic of public debate--during the late 1800s and early 1900s there was a lot of labor unrest with major strikes and protests surrounding issues of minimum wage, a 40 hour work week, safer working conditions, minimum working age, etc.
Basically, economic classes generally break down like this: workers own little to nothing but their ability to do manual labor, which they sale for a wage. Workers then take that wage and spend it on consumer goods that they just made at the factory, which in turn benefits the capitalist class. The capitalist class do not labor for a living. Rather, they own the machines and factories ("the means of production") in which workers labor each day for a modest wage. Middle class folks sit somewhere in between the workers and the capitalists. They may own a small business, but they probably work there each day alongside their employees, or they may be middle managers who earn a good salary but are not wealthy.
In the USA, usually we don't talk much about class politics.Does that mean class does not exist in the USA? Or are there economic classes?
If there are classes, do you think that they live together harmoniously? Do you think that there is no conflict of interest?
Or, is there class struggle between the workers and the capitalists? Is there a conflict of interest rooted in the selfish nature of people? Can you think of any (historical or contemporary) examples where class conflict between workers and capitalists was apparent?
If economic classes exist in the USA, do capitalists or workers exert more control over politicians and government policies? How do they exert this control?
Because we usually don't talk about class in the USA, are we more likely to be blind to our own class and blind to the class struggle? Do you think that we should talk about class politics more and emphasize our distinct class affiliations?
Or, maybe there are no classes in the USA. Maybe we all have a more or less equal starting place in life. We can all achieve "the American dream" of owning our own land and home with a white picket fence. Maybe this class thing is a bunch of bunk. We don't really talk about class because class isn't an important issue in American life. We really just need to work hard and pull ourselves up by the boot straps.
What do you think?
Classes definitely exist, both socially and economically, in the USA. No, we don't all exist in harmony. If we did, we probably wouldn't live in a capitalistic society and classes wouldn't exist. With class identification comes class disconnection and, therefore, conflict. Are these conflicts rooted in man's selfish nature? Perhaps. We often see men ultimately acting for their own ends or benefits. Rarely do we see random acts of kindness in society (whether it be a society controlled by government or not). Oprah might be giving away cars, but she probably realizes that people wouldn't like her as much or watch her show or buy her merchandise if she wasn't a "contributing member of society." But we like Oprah because not only does she benefit, but we do, too.
ReplyDeleteAs for apparent conflicts between economic classes in the USA, the minimum wage is the first thing that comes to mind. The majority of those in the lower economic classes feel that the minimum wage should be raised so that they can make more money for doing the same amount of work and that this way the "Big Men" at the top of mainstream organizations and companies won't be able to pick their pockets anymore. This is crap (in my humble opinion)! Raising minimum wage doesn't help anyone, not even the big shots. Raising minimum wage will ultimately cause inflation. It will encourage companies to believe that because the working class is making more money, they will have more money to spend, and they can raise their prices. The only result of raising minimum wage will be inflation. It won't help anyone.
As for who has more control in the economic classes, as exemplified by the minimum wage example, clearly, those in the upper classes have more control. The lower classes are stronger in numbers and, therefore, have a bigger voice. The problem is that they haven't learned how to use it yet, much less what to say. Unfortunately (and in other ways fortunately), money is power in the US. The more money you have, the greater your ability to make change.
I don't know who isn't talking about class division, but it certainly isn't me. In my hometown of Rockville, Maryland, you can't go to the grocery store two blocks up without seeing an instance of class conflict. In the neighborhood across from mine, the homes are *gigantic*, everyone pays someone else to cut their grass, and the garages and drive-ways are packed with hummers, sports cars, and SUVs. Come over to my neighborhood directly across the street and there are sometimes up to five families living in one single family home and kids as young as elementary school are joining gangs and sleeping on the curb. And I consider my neighborhood to be one of the better ones! Or at least for now anyways. Because I spend more time away from Rockville now, I notice changes more when I go back. The upper class neighborhoods haven't changed too much, but we didn't used to have problems with gangs or drug busts either. When I was a kid, most of the homes only had one family living in them. Now, because they're so expensive, people can't afford them on their own and so they ask other families to move in with them. We're talking, but I think we need to start acting. I mean, this is suburban, Rockville, Maryland I'm talking about here! I can't even imagine the changes happening in South East, DC, for example.
Class distinctions are existent in today's society. Whether or not we realize it or not, there is no harmony and discord and it only seems to only get worse as each day goes by. I also feel that some people do not have the opportunity to be handed an equal starting place as some children are born into families that are already thrown into poverty or depression while others inherit millions and millions of dollars just by blood alone. As unfair as this situation seems, it's life and it's the way social classes continue to form.
ReplyDeleteAs far as talking about the issues of social classes, we are only blinding ourselves the longer we go without facing the issues of class divisions instead of attempting to realize how much we're struggling socially and economically. If someone would be willing to act in the interest of another rather than their own, maybe there would never be a need for gangs to start or for multiple families to live together. I really think we all need to ask ourselves when change is really going to happen and to act on it.
I believe that social classes do exist in the United States they are just less defined. In the United States there are people who make more and people who make less. It seems that as Americans the rich in many cases help the poor.In some cases the rich only help the poor to make themselves look good in front of the public. I believe that people who adopt children are ultimately looking out for the children and giving them a better life. This is a result of the rich helping the poor. In many cases people cannot have children and they would love to have children but they cannot. If there is someone who is finacially unstable who cannot afford to have a child there are many people out there who cannot have children but have the financial ability to give a child a good life.
ReplyDeleteIn this day and age, classes seem to be less apparent. We don't speak of them , but they do exist. People judge one another. They see wether someone is wealthy or poor, and they see what person they lead themselves to be. Class is not a predetermined structure. Someone born in humble beginnings can become an extremely wealthy man, through hard work and determination. A good example of that is my dad. My dad grew up in Hollywood. To some that sounds ideal. They say it sounds like he grew up in paradise. That was not so. His family is what you would call worker class, even below worker class. His mother was responsible for raising 5 children on her own, after his father left them. She worked 3 jobs to support them. My dad, being the oldest child, began working just to help his mom and his family out. He would wake up at 2 in the morning, drive around throwing newspapers for a little money, then worked at a donut shop till school started. He would then go home and take his brothers to the dump, and find food, junk they could sell for money, anything useful. They struggled, and did what they could to get by. But my dad wanted more in life. He hated being poor, is was miserable and demeaning. So he worked hard in school. Read all the books in his local library by the time he finished high school. He then continued with jobs like becoming an amazing chef at an exclusive club at Disney Land, and an executive with Disney Corporation, being a Border Patrol Agent and then to his current job working for Homeland Security. He came from a place with nothing, and proved that he could go where he wanted to in life. So I see life, with class based upon judgement of others, but you yourself can strive hard in life to make something of yourself. You can work hard and achieve excellence in all you do. Don't let class determine the outcome of your life. Class exists, but we control where we fall on that scale.
ReplyDeleteYes, there are classes in America and no, they do not live harmoniously. If all the classes lived harmoniously then yes we could all have the "American dream" of a beautiful house with a white picket fence as Professor Stump said. The truth of the matter is, that we can't all start out in the same way. One person may have an easier means of paying for college and getting an education were as another person born into a lower class family may have to work two jobs just save up some money to get into college, and then keep working those jobs to keep paying for classes.
ReplyDeleteIn the matter of exerting control over politicians I would have to say that the capitalists exert more control for the simple fact that the capitalist class is basically in charge of the working class. The government was going to raise taxes on the business owners. If the gov't. had done that it would've affected everyone. As the saying goes "crap rolls downhill". If the gov't had raised taxes on the business owners then the business owners would've had to lower pay or cut staff just to pay the taxes for the year.
I believe we should talk more about classes and class struggle. There is no sense in acting like class isn't out there, because it is. It would be the same as Americans pretending that there aren't fatal diseases out there if they don't talk about them. If you don't know the facts of an STD or a common cold or flu how are you supposed to protect yourself against it? It's the same as classes. If we pretend they aren't there how are we gonig to help eachother to keep the country turning on the wheel of success.
There are classes in America, but we just try and hide them and make it seem like their isn't. We just like to pretend that everyone is equal and that everyone is in the same place. When that is clearly not true. There are rich and there are poor. But people still are not treated equally people get payed different amounts of money, people get respected more then others, and people live in bigger houses then some people. That is class right there. Every where you look you see some kind of class. it is ridiculous that we say everyone is equal and we are blinded by saying there is no class because that obviously is not true.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, it’s pretty easy to see that there are definite classes in America. You can see the divide just by driving through DC. There are neighborhoods with huge houses that are just a ten minute drive away from homes in which two to three families live. Even growing up in a small town I saw the division of economic classes every day. As for class struggle, it may not be evident on a daily basis, but I’m sure people in lower economic classes resent those who aren’t in the same position as them, just as people in higher economic classes may begrudge those who haven’t risen to their status. However, I don’t think anyone’s economic background prevents them from achieving “the American Dream”. It seems like there are just as many success stories from people who grew up poor and oppressed as from those who were not so unfortunate. Sure it’s harder to succeed when you don’t have as many advantages going for you, but it’s equally as possible.
ReplyDeleteErin Shaw
Without a doubt in my mind there are definetly define and seperate social classes. We are all seperated by the one thing this world runs upon and thats money. The classes are both run at a social aspect and an economic one. I believe that the classes live together in the best way that they can. It isn't an ideal situation, but that is the way things are and will probably always be. I think our counrty would function much better if there was a more Socialist setting, where everyone is more equal. Most Capitalists have never had to work for what they have, it is just passed down. They dont know what real work is so they have an easier time taking advantage of the working class. People with drive will always strive to get better but most will never get to that American dream.
ReplyDeleteObviously there are conflicts between the workers and the capitalists these are shown in the many strikes that factories have to try to get through to the money hungry capitalists at the top. In my hometown Delmarva Power workers went on strike because the company is taking substantial amounts money from their pensions each year. This is just example of many. Social classes are exsistent but i think most people in the working class are focused on moving up on the spectrum they do what they have to.
Jessica Dant
In the U.S. today there is definitely an economic and social class system. No, they do not live together harmoniously. Since we live in a capitalist society with an economic class system there is no way that we could live together peacefully without any conflict. In every class there is some sort of struggle maybe that struggle would be having problems with other classes. The struggle may not be as obvious to the outsider but it is there. I do believe that conflict of interest is rooted in the selfish nature of people. The reason why is because if you are being selfish you are only caring about yourself and no one else.
ReplyDeleteAn example that I can think of where class conflict between workers and capitalists was apparent would be a couple of years ago when many America car companies had to close some of their factories since many of them were either on the way to bankruptcy or were bankrupt. That caused a lot of tension and struggle for the working class because many people working there had been there for most of their lives. Now all of a sudden, no more jobs for these people and it cause’s major conflicts between workers and capitalists.
Since the U.S. has an economic class system the government and politics are controlled by the people who have money which are the capitalist. Even though the government or politics will tell the truth because then the working class won’t vote for them. The capitalist exert this control on the government and politics with money. If the capitalist give the politics money then they will help the upper class as much as possible.
I think since we don’t talk about class struggle or economic classes it cause’s some people that are in higher class not to notice it or become blind to it. But if you are from an economic class that is the middle, lower middle or working class then you are more like to see it more than the capitalists. Since you have the basic living stuff to worry about and if you’re a capitalist you don’t really have to worry about those things as much. So I believe that we should talk about class divisions instead of pretending like they don’t exist. Just because you don’t talk about something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. We aren’t 10 years old anymore we have to face our problems instead of ignoring them.
Christina Haag
In today's American society there definetly are economic classes that go from the lower class to the upper class. The lower class being the workers, the middle class being the small business owners, and the upper class being the capitalists or the big business oweners. I don't think that there is harmony between the three classes, especially the upper and lower class. The workers are the one's who have to physically work and get hardly anything in return, whereas the capitalists "barely" work, if you will, and get everything. So of course there is going to be conflict of interest when you look at it from that point of view. There is no doubt that the capitalists have more control over politics and government seeing as how they are the one's with all the money. Being involved with politics is very costly and the capitalists are the ones with the funds. Discussing economic classes is something that shouldn't be ignored and something that should be discussed within different political groups. I don't think we are necessarily blind to the social classes because we are all aware of them, but I think there are people that do ignore it and don't really think it's relevant to our society to bring it up. On the other hand, I do believe that each person has the opportunity to have that "American Dream" but some are born into wealth while others have to work hard and build up to that dream. In the end though class is very imporant in society and should definetly be addressed.
ReplyDeleteTo understand the concept behind economic class, one must know it can also be described using the term social stratification. This can be defined as the hierarchical arrangement of individuals into divisions of power and wealth within a society, for example upper, middle, and working class. In the united states especially our goal as a human being is to slowly climb this “wealth” ladder using our resources either given to us, or the resources we have to work hard to obtain. The united states has always been a part of the class system, in a way it is the power-rich versus the power-less. As a whole our classes live together harmoniously because granted the road might be easier for some, the road to success is always equal in the beginning for all of us. You start with education which is necessary in the social class climb. Although if you have trouble with this be it money problems, or anything else there is always some way to overcome these obstacles. Much harder work and a lot more time is probably the result of this, but if one wants to achieve “the american dream” we have to work hard to do so. Conflict of interest is a thing in every class system based society. How does an upper class member truly know what the lower class members need. They can’t possibly have the same concerns and desires as each other being that they exist in two completely different worlds. In our nations history Unions and working class protests are the best example of historical class uprising. The owners of production being the upper class, had no idea what the workers had to put up with. Poor, and dangerous working condition led to many conflicts and struggles between classes throughout the ages. This has always created a line between the powerful capitalists and the almost powerless socialists.
ReplyDeleteI firmly believe that classes do indeed exist in America today, although the subject is hardly ever a topic used in discussion.It is if we are avoiding the topic all together to try to keep the peace. Many politicians feel if they bring class into their campaigns,then an upheaval will arise. I truly feel we should talk about the class system more, and it shouldn't be labled as "taboo." The capitalist do have more of a voice in what goes on in our government and country than the middle class or the working class.The capitalist have the funds to contribute to campaigns, and this is very important to those wishing to take public office. The elite are still treated better in our country. People are still judged for what they have and what they do not have. The more money a person has, the more he is respected.The working class citizen must really work hard for his daily bread, while the capitalist get rich off this process. It isn't fair, but I really don't comprehend what it is we can do about it. I am a single mother of four. I am working full time and going to college.I would love to get ahead! Laura Remsburg
ReplyDeleteAlthough classes exist in our nation, they are not as clear cut as what we read in The Iron Heel. America is a country of the middle class. If you were to survey a large sample of Americans, almost all would categorize themselves into a middle class. Our middle class however ranges from government employed engineers to car mechanics. Our middle class has a wide range in wealth and income. There are people that struggle in our society, but they have a much easier life than the lower class illustrated in our text. Our nation provides free public education and also helps the lower class with things like healthcare and food stamps. We also have an upper class that still owns the factories and other various companys. Yes, we have classes in America and yes, we still have problems with our system. Any country that is not ruled by the communist party will have variation in wealth and income creating classes over time. Although we have classes, they are not as drastic or as severe a problem as they once were.
ReplyDeleteClasses exist in the United States no matter how much we try to act like they don't. Although the U.S. is primarily made up of middle class, it is still the elite upper class that rules the country. Think about it, how many U.S. congressmen and presidents have been from the working class, not that many. It takes a lot of money to win an election, therefore it is highly uncommon for the average Joe to successfully run for a national office.
ReplyDeleteAnd on the other end of the spectrum look at the lower class in America. As much as we want to deny it there are large numbers of Americans going without the basic necessities (food, clothing, and shelter). In this class the people are living in government housing which in a lot of cases is too small for the family living there. However, the Americans that aren't in this situation do not like to think of this and prefer to think of America as a great land of opportunity and wealth.
Classes are highly distinguished, and just because somebody grows up in a comfortable middle class home doesn't mean that the classes don't exist. Sure the middle class may be a broad range of economic class, but that doesn't mean that people outside of the middle class aren't distinguished from the middle class. No multi-billionaire would step foot in middle class society, let alone live there. Likewise no poverty stricken family would be welcome in middle class society. That is why the rich stay with the rich, and the middle class stays with the middle class, while the poor are locked up in government-run project housing similar to a jail house.
Class is alive in America. You never hear a politician talk of it. It's as if they want to give the poor hope that their situation will change. I know people who are disabled and can't work. Fairly young people with an unfortunate life. Their problems are not their fault. The government provides them with a certain amount of money every month. They live from paycheck to paycheck. Of course they want something different. But they can't get it with how they live. The money the government gives is not enough to raise them up to a working level. The people I know remain at almost poverty level. Not too sure what would change that.
ReplyDeleteClasses most certainly exist in America today, but its true that we try and hide it and pretend that everybody is equal. It can basically be deviated between the rich and the poor. But when it comes to the rich, there are two types- those who love their money and those who love their money but could live with less of it. People who love it but could live without it tend to do a lot of charity work and give some of it away to help those less fortunate. But the fact that people try and pretend there arent any classes just makes the fact that they exist in America the more obvious.
ReplyDeleteIn The Iron Heel, Ernest said: "Each of you dwells in a cosmos of his own making, created out of his own fancies and deires. You do not know the real world in which you live, and your thinking has no place in the real world ..."
ReplyDeleteI believe this applies to the dicussion of classes in the United States. Yes, there are seperate classes in our country, but so many people seem oblivious to it. The wealthy may be so busy inside their own head ("a cosmos of his own making") that they don't realize how many others are suffering.
Also, I believe many citizens choose to ignore poverty. If they are aware of it, they don't work very hard to stop it: as Ernest argued, many of the cheap products we buy are produced by workers who are unpaid and treated poorly. By purchasing these products, we are encouraging cheap labor and thus, poverty.
Laura Baker
Yes class does exist in America. Its all around us but some poeple choose not to talk about it(especially politicans) because they will be accused of starting a class war. In my opinion in america there are really only two classes; the rich and the poor. It seems like the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, making the distinction between classes even more obvious. With the recent decline in the economy the people of the lower class ,who were before the economic downfall barely making it, are now it serious trouble because they cant afford things now and because many of them are laborers they are getting laid off putting even more stain on them and there families. on the other hand the upper class is still making money putting them even farther ahead than before and making the distinction between the classes even more obvious that before. but overall there are obvious classes in the US and people can try to avoid them but they are still there
ReplyDeleteClasses are very much so in existence are in the U.S. Most just refuse to acknowledge them. The rich stay in essentially their "world" where poverty and nothing of the sorts exist, while the poor do their best just to get buy. Among the wealthy there are a few that do what they can to help the less fortunate while maintaining their high bank account. Oprah is a prime example; she would give cars to all her audience members on her show. She was known for her charity work.
ReplyDeletePoliticians, themselves are usually in the upper class, and they use their wealthy friends to help boost their campaigns for elections. Americans are viewed as greedy, and to a point Americans are. Money essentially runs this place we call home, and it doesn't seem like that will be changing anytime soon.
There are definitely social classes in America. Anyone can see this quite evidently just by driving through the streets of Martinsburg. One street will have nice, pretty houses in a friendly neighborhood, and the another will have more run-down, "scetchy" houses. Sometimes, due to bad choices, people live in a poor neighborhood because they screwed up, but other times people live there because they are forced to; because they have a big family and not enough income to support them. People may try to avoid the topic or pretend that social classes do not exist, but they are there, and they probably always will be. I'm not sure if people are actually "blind" to the class struggle, but i think most try to ignore it. They feel as if it's not their problem so why bother, but if you have a lot of "stuff," things you'd be fine without, why not donate it or help out someone less fortunate than yourself. Some people genuinely cannot help their situation and need a little assistance. There shouldn't be a struggle with classes, but there probably always will be.
ReplyDeleteIn the United States today, classes certainly exsit, wether we accept it or not. I also feel that we don't live harmoniously for many resons. We argue that everyone is equal but in fact it's pretty obvious that we are not. As said in class about politicans not speaking about the topic or formulating a purpose to bring it upon discussion, I feel that it's a step into a change for the people (poor class) in society, but not an action. I feel that as the wealthy people continue to bring in money, they will lose sight of others and how they might be "stuck in their own way" meaning wrapped up in what they have and not realizing how the poor are affected nor show that they care. After the economic downfall, it's become more of a struggle for many people in the United States and has made it harder for people to rise above. I know a couple people who work, 7 days a week 14 hours a day and in the end they continue to struggle with many hardships, but it seems that one more dollar is the motivation they need to keep pushing forward.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned in my last blog about seeing poverty in another country, I also sponsor a child from the Philippines. I have been sponsoring him since he was 5 years old and he is now 13. I recieve monthly updates on his health, how much income his parents bring home, the education he recieves and my personal favorite letters from him. It's odd to see the difference over the years with how much has changed for him and how much money his family makes. I'm still shocked because it has not changed significantly.
Elizabeth Higgins
Classes in America most definitely exist. People that attend college are usually from the middle to upper middle class therefore, we are separated from all other classes. All of us in the U.S are separated by the differences in class. It seems that all different classes in the U.S do not get along harmoniously because they do not understand the struggles each has to face daily. There is also a struggle between capitalists or politicians and the middle, working, and lower class since they have the ultimate control over how our tax money is spent and government policies which tend to benefit them more, which makes the rich richer and the poor more poor.It seems many people complain about how corrupt our politicians are so i am assured that many people are aware that there is a class system in the U.S even though it is 2010.
ReplyDeleteBrianna Morell
In the USA, usually we don't talk much about class politics.Does that mean class does not exist in the USA? Or are there economic classes?
ReplyDeleteOf course classes exist in the USA, they do not live together harmoniously, there is a conflict of interest. This class struggle is between the blue collar workers and the capitalists. There are plenty of examples throughout history and present when class conflict between workers and capitalists, an extreme example could be slavery in the US, and a normal example would be union strikes.
Capitalists exert more control over politicians and government policy because they are normally the ones funding the politicians. The capitalists are able to pay for the person, whose views they agree with, to be in a political office.
Just because we don't usually talk about class in the USA does not mean that we are blind to our own class and the class struggle. Usually people do not talk about economic classes because it is a sensitive subject much like money, religion and racism are sensitive subjects. We should talk about class politics more so that people are more aware, the more that people know about their own class and that the government is controlled by higher classes the better they will understand how government works and maybe how they can better it.
In a sense Americans are all born "equal" but in reality some people are born with more opportunities that are handed to them, than others. Those that are born to rich families may have a better chance of staying rich, or networking or going to better schools and getting their graduate degree and better jobs. Those people that are born to lower class, maybe a single mother that only works part time, may have a harder time affording college later, or being able to go to graduate school, thus they may have to work a whole lot harder than the upper class person that had the opportunities they didn't.
Dustin Jones
I think there are very distinct classes in America but it seems like it is taboo to talk about the end classes (Upper class and lower class) anywhere outside of your home. I think that everyone wants to paint the picture that everyone in America is equal to one another so they focus on the “Middle class” Everything is about the “Middle class” when it comes to politics. You always hear of those who “Beat the odds” and rise from the lower to the upper class, but generally that never happens. Most of the lower class (Those living in poverty or just above poverty) are usually born into it and really have no way of rising above it. I feel the same goes for those in the upper class aswell; theres the rare individual who is a working class man and finds himself one day as part of the upper class, but that rarley happens.
ReplyDeleteEven though in America we do not talk much about class politics that does not mean that classes do not exist; they do. Depending on how much money you have will classify you into one of the three classes; it is all based upon money. No one is in a higher class simply because they are better than another person, it’s because they have more money and are “better off.” The classes do not live together harmoniously at all. People unconsciously judge people on whether they have money or not and it is very evident that some people have more money than others.
ReplyDeletePeople who are considered to be the capitalist have the “ideal” life. They do not have to work, they simply own the factory, and they are well off whereas the working class has to work for their living and sometimes that is still not good enough. Many times the people in the working class will strive to have a better life and no matter how hard they try something will happen and set them back. Capitalist don’t see that, they are often used to having people work them and then gaining the profits.
Although sometimes I feel that talking about classes could be bad but in the long run I think it would be best. By not talking about it we are blinding ourselves to the issue. I don’t mean that we should talk about it in a way that I am better than you or you are better than me but I feel that it needs to be talked about to change things for the better. If we open our eyes to the issue we potentially could help one another so there wouldn’t be such a distinct class division.
Jenna Benke
I definitely believe that the class system is exsistent in our country. I mean, sometimes it is quite obvious. However, I do not believe that people focus all their attention on it. For example, if I see a person that looks like he or she is from the lower class, I don't aviod them or make them feel inferior to me.
ReplyDeleteIn the USA there is the class system. It may not be said but just look at the difference of the people of working class and the capaltiast. The average person today is a harder worker and will problemly never get to the high class. Even though people try to live above their means "Keeping up with the Jones" so you would say just to look like a differnt class. Class do happen in the USA because everyone wants that dream to have money to do what they would like to do with.
ReplyDeleteIn the United States there are definitely economic classes. However, they do not live together in harmony. A good example I guess would be the movie "Trading Spaces" starring Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd. Dan Aykroyd's characer plays as a broker who works for a commodities brokerage in Brooklyn, New York. Eddie Murphy's character plays a homeless man who tries to pretend he has no legs and begs for money as he sits outside this brokerage every day. At one point Aykroyds character talks down on Murphy because he is homeless. In my personal opinion, I could definitely see how wealthy people may not get along with people of lower economic standing (i mean homeless people with this example though). If people have the homeless living on the streets outside of their home it could probably lower property value. I also know that a lot of people, no matter what economic class they may be, assist homeless people, whether it may be helping out in a shelter or soup kitchen or even contributing some of their money to help those in need. We can only hope that people more fotunate than others give their time and money to better other's lives as well as their own.
ReplyDeleteThere is definitely a class struggle in the United States today, and I'm pretty sure always has been. Whether we are told about it verbally or whether we have seen it first hand we know it's there..even if we don't acknowledge it. There are those we see fit to call hobos, in which they are possibly the lowest class out there today. They are homeless and broke, and yet to us, it's normal to see these people standing on the side of the road with signs saying 'retired vet' or 'will work for food & shelter'. Yet we do not even turn our heads..or most of us at least. Is this not an example of a class in America? While we have those people out begging on the street we also have different areas in society where income is larger and the houses are bigger. One place that comes to mind for me, and not the best example, is Leesburg. I hear people say all the time, they want to get a job in Leesburg.. The pay is higher..the houses are bigger.. you get the picture. But then you get the average Joe who no matter how hard he works and how many hours he puts in a week, the more he is taxed and that much more he loses. In the end, he'll make a few extra bucks for himself, and never actually be able to afford that new house of his in Leesburg, or wherever his dream home's location may be. That is definitely what I would consider part of the middle class. We do have a job, and we do have a roof over our head.. but to get to the "American Dream" it will take more than what the average Joe has to offer (unless he goes to college, but therefore he will still be in debt to the government in some way, shape, or form).
ReplyDeletePeople out in the public view, such as politicians, actors, comedians, models, and big-time corp. owners are all people I would prefer to throw into the capitalist category. Sure some of them may act/model/talk for their money..but where does the money come from? How many of them actually had to work for a living? How many have to deal with the public (other than running from papparazi)?
And there are tiffs throughout the nation between the 'capitalists' and 'labourers'.. it's just rarely acknowledged. Lower classes may seem to think of capitalists as people who don't work and people who should get off their high horse and join the rest here working on planet America. Yet at the same time.. the capitalists view labourers just as that, labourers. They look down upon them, and believe that they are like that because of their own fault. That's not the case. America may be all about "equal rights" and such, but even our equal rights have limitations, in most cases based upon the situation in which you were born. How fair does that sound?
Kristi Barrett
I personally do believe that there are distinct classes in the USA but I don't feel like there is a battle between classes like there was in the past. I feel that everyone in the United States has every opportunity given to them to make their lives better for themselves. Not everyone in the United States wants to be part of the Upper Class but they still have the opportunity to be. We all want to talk about money money money. Everyone tries to say that the poorer class doesn't have as many opportunities as the middle or upper classes but I think that's crap. As kids we all get the same high school education. If a kid from a poorer class studies hard and gets good grades they have every opportunity to get an academic scholarship. Right? I understand that with the economy right now it is harder for the poorer class to find jobs and make life better but it's just as hard for the middle and upper class. With the exceptions of those hand full of people who have just been given millions of dollars in inheritance those people in the upper class have worked for what they have. We can complain about these celebrities being over paid all we want but we are the ones that turn on the tv every night to watch them. Realistically I truely believe that every American has an equal opportunity to make life better for themselves. It's all what people want for themselves.
ReplyDeleteSamanthia McQuade 100.03
There is definitely a class existance in the U.S. However, it is hard to classify people into class. In U.S. our class is not rigid like the Caste System in India. People can move up and down the ladder if they want. A poor man can win a lottery and switch to upper class. Where as a middle classman can pretend he's an upper classman as long as he has good credit. I think maybe it is because of this opened system and false pretence that make some people talk less or even unaware of the class. For those who are aware of class also aware of the struggle.
ReplyDeleteI believe there is class struggle. You can see people who live below the proverty line struggle everyday just to bring food to the table. If there is no class struggle, then everyone should be equal and not be hungry across the nation. Well this is not the case in New Jersey, which is one of the richest state and also has one of the poorest city in nation. When stuggle exists, harmony kind of goes right out of the window. Can a poor and a rich man live hormaniously together? I think we can imagine no. You don't see a shaggy looking house in Beverly Hills because the riches tend to stick to the rich neighborhoods and the poors are stuck to the poor neightborhoods. It is sad to say it but the poor are living below proverty; they don't have the means and money to get out of the conditions that they are in.
There are most certainly classes in the United States. We may not talk about them, or care to highlight them in the media, but they exist and not always harmoniously. Class tensions are evident all the time. We don’t have the dramatic hierarchy like we see in The Iron Heel, but the tension is there. The difference between the bottom of the financial totem pole and the top in the country is gigantic. With the amount of people living and struggling below the poverty level it would be impossible to never encounter a situation where these classes aren't noticeable. Just my drive into work makes me irritated when I pass through walk I have dubbed "mansion-ville." The houses I see are so large they just exceed any kind of human need, and I feel pangs of irritation... or jealousy (I'm sure it's a combination of them both). These however are what I would consider daily run-ins with uncomfortable class differences, and it swings both ways.
ReplyDeleteAny time I read about political debate over taxes, there is some kind of underlying class conflict being exploited. Especially with Obama and his tax cut promises, calling for cuts for middle to low class and "modest" increases for the rich. These sort of taxing issues create tensions, and clear class lines become evident.
That being said, I don’t necessarily believe that one class has much more of an influence over the other. I think it is pretty obvious that wealthier folks tend to circulate in politics, but without the "best interest" of the people you represent (I'd be willing to bet most of them and middle to low class) you can’t really hope to be elected. We do have to identify with our political leaders, and though we don’t ALL identify... that's the reason why we hold elections. Popular majority changes and so do the needs of the general populations. During any given political campaign, giving the background on where a politician came from is huge part of how they try to gain support. Working men want to be represented by a working man, and politicians will play on that.
So no... we are not blind to our class needs. But our classes, overall, have not been a huge barrier in holding anyone down. That is one of the reasons why America is so great, we can basically all achieve "anything." The argument can, of course, be made that some of us are born into more advantageous environments, but we are all given those fundamental needs (public education, opportunity) to succeed. I'm a firm believer in those ideals.
I deffinantly think we still have classes in America. There is the upper class, the class that is wealthy enough not to work but to own the means of production, the upper middle class, which would be someone who owns a store but still works there everyday, the middle class that is like all the average joes that have to go to work everyday and bring enough home just to live a descent life, and the lower middle class that has to work their ass off everday just to bring home enough to barily get by, and then their is the lower class that isn't even in the posistion to get a job or does work but barily makes minimum wage. I don't know if you would say they live harmonously with one another, but passively. Class politics are not discussed in this day and age, not because they don't exist but because people are to argumented and immature to handle the real facts of life. Even bringing up the talk of class politics would be a breath I wouldn't want to waste and time I don't have, because everyone would cry and bitch, and then the next thing you know you would get the raceism card or someother kind of excuse. A person is born into the class that they were made to be successful in. Most likely you will be the same class that your parents are. There are cases in which a person can move up or down in classes but not with out a sufficient amount of effort. It's the way life is, get up everyday and do what you have to do. If your fortunate enough to not have to work hard, then good for you, but if not get up, but your boots on and work your ass off, for it will only make you a better person, because then everything you will have will have been earned! Lifes not fair, get over it, crying about it isn't going to change anything. No one said life was easy, either...
ReplyDeletecanaan metz
I believe that classes do exist in the USA, both socially and economically, however they aren't addressed that much because it would just bring about more issues of people not being equal. I do not believe that all classes live together harmoniously, there is conflict because some may work harder for what they get and others may just do little work and receive more money. This causes jealousy and conflict among many people. Everyone wants to make a good living and be able to provide for their family but this does not always come easy, people go through many hardships just trying to make enough money to pay the bills.
ReplyDeleteClasses are very apparent in our country today. People always argue that if we're all supposed to be made equally then why do people have such different fortunes and fates. Some people have all the success in the world come right to them while others have to struggle all their lives. They also say people are usually born in to these situations so there's nothing they can do about it. However I say they can. People in this country have to power to go out and make as much of themselves as they want to. Just because you're born into a certain situation doesn't mean you can't be something else if you simply try hard enough. Just because my parents belong to a certain class does not mean that I have to as well. It's simply up to me to be what I want to be.
ReplyDeleteIn our Capitalistic society, classes absolutely exist, although are not really talked about that much. I've always broken classes in to three categories, the upper class, middle class, and lower class, and sometimes broken the middle class in to upper middle, and lower middle. I feel like in our society, everyone wants to put a label on who they are, and class status is a large factor in defining a person, and the kind of lifestyle they are accustomed to.
ReplyDeleteI believe that everyone is naturally going to fit in with members of their own class, over another. This holds true for me personally, I grew up in the suburbs of Northern Virginia, living between the upper middle class, and lower middle class, and depending on many factors my family fit in to one of those groups. Now if anyone has ever been or lived in NOVA, you will know that there are some ridiculously wealthy people out there. Well one of my best friends growing up, lived in the same townhouse development I did, went to the same public school, and got there on the same busted up yellow school bus that I did. Well I guess we were about 14 or 15, his dad made a fortune, and when I say fortune I mean boat loads of cash, in the housing market. They quickly moved out of the development, and in to a million dollar house in a fancy gated community. He left the public school system, for some ritzy private school, and entered a new social circle. We remained good friends for a while, while he was still getting adjusted to the new lifestyle, but once he started making new friends in his new "social class" I started spending less and less time with him. While him and his friends were vacationing in Europe, me and my friends were driving to the beach. You get the idea, different social circles, different lifestyles.
I'm sure that the largest class in the country is the working class, but I don't believe that they exert any control over the government. It's the upper class that has all the say even if were led to believe that the working classes has any input.
There is no doubt that there are classes in the U.S., and they are eassily seen.You can not deny that there are those who make a substantial amount of money while others do not; with individuals in the middle.Also, there is a conflict of interest. Practically everyone that you talk to would not mind making more money. Some may be selfish as would be a capitilists who already have a higher income than most, but some may be middle class people. They are not necessarily greedy but have the opinion that a liittle extra would be beneficial.Possibily for their small buisnesses that could then help the working class by raising their wages.It is true that a hard-working, determined lower class individual can become quite successful in society but they have great disadvantages compared to a welthier individual. This could bring about conflict between the classes.
ReplyDeleteMoney may not mean everthing but it does provide influence in politics and government policy. From what I have learned, capitilist are of the most selfish people and with the majority of politicians being capitilist, they are persuaded by other capitilists. Therefore, giving capitilists more control over politics because of what they can bring to the table.
Not all are blind to classes and class struggle, the majority of which that are blind come from the capitilists. They dont have to think about those that are above them economically because they are at the top. Those that are in the working class are reminded of their class on a daily basis with the struggles that they endure. There are similarities between people in each indivual class but there are also differences. Making exceptions within each class. Not all that are wealthy are greedy and unaware of the different classes.
Classes definitely exist in today’s society both socially and economically in America and they most definitely do not exist in harmony. Of course there is going to be conflict. People get angry because some don’t have to work for their money, while others do. Just by driving through DC or even New York you can see that clearly. Though, we sometimes try and hide it, America just can't hide the truth. The classes are getting worse and worse because it’s following the economy, but here in the United States we have the ability to move up and down in the class system. It’s not all set in stone like in some other countries. America is full of opportunities for everyone, though it’s not always equal for everyone.
ReplyDeleteI definitely believe that social classes exist in society today. I agree with joster01 in the sense that children are automatically put into a certain social class because their family status. If your parents are wealthy, you are most likely going to have money and not have to work as soon/as hard. If your parents are just barely making it financially, your probabky going to be raised as a worker. And, if you are brought up in a less wealthy family, you can work and work, but chances are your not going to be as wealthy overall as the people born into the higher class families.
ReplyDeleteI mean, i don't believe it is necessarily fair but that's how it is. It doesn't mean you should not work as hard or think you can't get to that level though. It will most likely just take a lot longer because the wealthy family would have had that built up over generations in most cases.
Classes are clearly alive and evident in our society today. Just because they're not talked about, does not mean they don't exist. Our country bases itself off of the idea that were all equal. If talk of class begins to arise, clearly were not equal anymore. I believe that the reason it is not brought up (especially in the case of politicians running for office) is because most of them solely preach "equal treatment for everyone, equal taxes for everyone...etc." and if the idea of a social class is brought up, people start to resent that politician in fear of them favoring one class over the other.
ReplyDeleteWhether people try to hide it or not, it exists. Its discussed or brought up directly or indirectly someway, somehow, everyday. Even if you don't realize it or intend to it's brought up. It is a bit sad though because sometimes your class status determines the outcome of a lot of things. For example, the fact that someone is rich could determine your "pull" on politics which I believe shouldn't have anything to do with it but sadly, that is how our society works sometimes.
I agree there are classes in the United States. Those who are making 100k annually surely worked hard to attain that goal. There is no shortcut in life to be rich and it takes courage and effort to attain your goals in life. I belief that, rather than letting the working class suffer, the High or rich classes shouold invest in making them better person.
ReplyDeleteFor exmaple, lets say an Asian person makes $5 an hour and has a family to feed. That surely not enough. If the rich could atleast help in educating the working class, there will be not only less homeless people but an increase in sanity. Most people in the rich class are just selfish to give away money, or even if they do, it is not enough. I understand they worked hard to get where they are but if we want our nation to get back to its step, we need to corperate together no matter what class or race you are in.
Lastly, people need to think before they act. This is due excessives bill that this issue of classes goes on. We all need to live on our standards rather than buying things we know we cannot afford just to grab people attention. This is how the banks takes advantage of you pulling you down in the working class to pay all your bills. If you know you cannot afford any item, leave it alone, get an education and i am pretty sure you will afford itonce you are done. The things many teennager dont understand it education. Without it, you are pretty nothing. No wonder the rich class know how to spend and save to stay in business with their wealth. This is due to the banking concept of education they have acknowledge as time passed. Leaving it to our next generatioin making their choice on what they want to be. THere should be less school drop rates as school goes on if people really want to get what they dersire. Education is the only way to success that will open you all this oppurtinity, not only getting you out of poverty but also making the world a better place.
Of course we have definite class distinctions in the U.S.A.. Strange that it should be ignored, but if it is then the question is, "Who benefits?" Right?
ReplyDeleteWell, if our class distinctions are pointed out on a regular basis, then, perhaps, the vast majority, who will find themselves on the lower half of the graph, will begin to see themselves as members of the same group. As it stands now we focus more on the identity of ourselves based on race, religion, or immigration status. It could be that the ommission, if indeed there is one, is an attempt to keep the skinny rats fighting amongst themselves, so that the fat rats can continue to stuff their faces. But what do I know?
As far as an example where class conflict between workers and capitalists was apparent . . . I believe there was a bit of a conflict over mine workers rights, right here in W.V. back in the early 1900s that saw the government siding with the mine owners. I seem to remember hearing that it was inclement weather alone that kept the government from bombing the striking miners. I should research that a little more. There was a female labor leader involved . . . I think they called her "Mother."
There are classes in America, absolutely. And, at this point in time, I wouldn’t call the relationship between classes a “conflict.” There may be a few nasty words exchanged between companions about members of a different class, but then they just move on with their lives. I feel that the harmony of classes depends a lot on location. As I write this, I’m texting a friend of mine whose family some would consider a different class than mine. We’re very close, and friendship between classes is quite common around here. However, I live in a fairly small town in West Virginia. If you went to New York City, you wouldn’t see an heiress who is using daddy’s credit cards on 5th Avenue spending her spare time with a girl who works part time at a pizzeria and is going to school on a scholarship. In situations like this, different classes are just leading their own lives and avoiding each other unless they have actual business together. It isn't spoken about much, it just happens. But, again, I wouldn't call that a conflict.
ReplyDeleteEven though we choose to ignore it or simply not talk about classes there are classes in the U.S. Classes do not always live harmoniously and if they did then the idea that we could all have the “American Dream” would be possible for everyone. It is possible for people to move up and down in class but some people have an advantage from birth. We are born into a class and from that point some people have an easier path to the “American dream” and for others that dream is simply too far out of reach. It is clear in our society that not everyone can have this upper class life style. Look around any local town and you will see your families that are barely scraping by and the others than have more than anyone could ask for. I worked within a public school last year and saw example of class everyday from the student whose parents worked hard and lived out of their car to the student whose dad owns half of the town and lives in the house with a white picket fence. Our country has a variation in wealth and income and even if we choose to ignore it or silence the talk about that doesn’t make it disappear. I don’t think by any means that we are blind to the idea of class I think in our society it is a topic that we don’t find acceptable to talk about constantly.
ReplyDeleteFrom 8am to sunset, our American flag rises to the day and settles at night. Seeing glory flying tall against the blue sky like a beacon to all that freedom is here and her colors will cuddle you as a mother to a child. To hear the “Star-Spangle Banner” either by vocals at a baseball game or by instruments when rendering honors to the flag while expanding our chest and holding our heads up high.
ReplyDeleteThis country has conquered many obstacles but many still stand in our way. We are not a perfect nation but we are strong. Many in the classroom know where I stand in my beliefs about this country and if they agree or disagree no one can question my patriotism and not because I have served in the navy but I have seen many wonderful things across the globe but no matter what beauty other nation have, their politics is something I do not believe in and I will always want to come home to my blanket, The Red, White, and Blue.
Freedom is trying to answer everyone that lives here but no one can always, or sometimes never, get what they want but deserve and answer. Freedom means that a soldier or sailor serves so that you are protected in a safe and secure society. When a child disobeys a rule then they show some disrespect to the parent and when a person or more commit a crime that hurts others and their rights, they stomp on that freedom.
We are not a totally free society though. We have to have laws to protect even if it restricts some. We have speeding laws and even though we have vehicles that can reach speeds far greater than 100mph, we have these laws because many abuse that speed and someone or more gets injured or dead.
On one of my duties we have locks placed on certain systems and we were always told that they were there to keep honest people honest. We have laws to keep honest people honest and when someone strays, we have punishments that guarantee much, if not all, of the freedoms are taken away.
We do have the freedom to have an honest debate about our beliefs but then again we also have restrictions that prevent us from hurting others.
America is the most generous country in the world, and greed takes away the freedom of everyone. The problems that our nation and the world face can be traced to greed and power. “"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Baron John Edward Acton (1834–1902). The brilliant part of this country is that no one man is a controller of all. We have three branches in the federal government and state. No military leader in charge but a commander in chief is an elected civilian but still has checks and balances. The greatest part is the people have the power to elect the politicians, just wish many of them would research on who is the better candidate because of what they have done and not on rhetoric alone.
Our freedoms are more so rights that are protected or taken away. We elect the people who make the laws and those approved are carried out.
Let freedom ring
I believe that social and economic classes exist in the United States today. It's almost obvious, but they aren't discussed very often. It's a touchy subject, really. The classes are living together in our society, but that doesn't mean harmoniously. I'm sure some people in the working class think that it is unfair that they have to go to work everyday to make a small amount of money to barely get by, while others are born into wealth.
ReplyDeleteThe working or middle classes may argue that it's not fair or not everyone is "equal." I believe, however, that everyone has the equal right to the potential to work hard, and get to where they want to be in life, to set goals, and to reach them. Just because you aren't born into a wealthy family doesn't mean that you can not attain wealth and satisfaction in your life. That is a choice you have to make for yourself.
Since America is a Capitalistic Nation, we have classes. Every single style of government has some form of classes. Even if we all made the same sum of money we would still have classes. There would be the political class the voting class and so on. Classification in my mind is not a bad thing, it is the STEREOTYPICAL tag that we bring with the classes.
ReplyDeleteThe problem with having classes in a "free"
Nation is who holds the power. Rich politicians hold all of the power in our Country. We give them that power which makes it okay, but it still leads to thoughts going abroad the lines of stereotypes.
I do believe that classes exist both Nationwide and worldwide, We just fail to realize this or Just to ignore the fact that they actually do exist. There the a saying that "everyone has equal rights to everything." This can be true in a way and also not true somehow i believe that everyone single person is born into a class whether known or not, therefore there struggles varying with classes. People from the Working Class and Middle classes obviously have to work a harder to achieve that American dream, While the capitalist are born into the American dream. So they have a tendency to choose not to work because they will still survive whilst the working class, Labor is a must in order to put dinner on the table.
ReplyDeleteTherefore there are classes in The U.S people just fail to realize it or possibility that they just ignore it.
Class politics and struggle are complicated in America because class lines are less distinct. Are there classes? Of course, there are those who clearly are wealthy, highly influential, and whose lives mimic that of the capitalist class in the "Iron Heel". There are also those who are poor working two or more jobs just to pay the bills or who are injured at work and spend years just trying to get workers comp through the legal system. We have unions whose sole purpose is to find balance between the struggle of the owners and the workers. There is always a struggle of some kind. We struggle over the movement of jobs out of America or minimum wage or safety regulations. On the other hand someone who grew up dirt poor has the chance to become filthy rich in America with luck, hard work, or usually with a combination of both. In addition, people who make the same amount of money are not always in the same class. Depending on where they live in the States they might be considered richer or poorer because cost of living is different. Essentially, class lines are very blurry in the middle (as we tend to define classes as more than just wealthy, middle, and poor. There are several classes of middle) but tend to be more distinct at the ends (the very poor and the very rich). Unfortunately, most of the worker class come from the middle that is so hard to define. Still there is always struggle of some kind between them. It's just very complicated.
ReplyDeleteI definitely feel like there are classes in the Untied States.Can you honestly look at the fast food worker who makes $5 dollars an hour and the movie star who makes $800,000 dollars a movie and tell me we don't have classes?There is not alot of emphasis put on classes in our society and I don't feel like there is alot of conflict between the classes in our country.We are lucky enough to live in a society where the "american dream" is possible,you just of to work hard for it.
ReplyDeleteBlair Jewell 100.04
I believe class inequality does exist in the United States, and it is based off of economic inequality. In most societies, the rich are always more powerful than the poor. In the United States, the rich are the ones who run the country and provide the laws of the land. This inequality keeps the poor poor and the rich rich. But, in America there is a chance to raise your status, but some have better opportunities than others depending on where you live and who you know. I believe that class politics is an important topic that people should be aware of. But, the rich citizens of the United States would like to keep the poorer citizens in the dark. If the less wealthy people would be more knowledgeable about this topic, it would cause an uprising and put the more pressure on the richer people to maintain equality in the United States. The way that the rich keep people in the dark is through media and the constant portrayal of the United States as a world leader of equality.
ReplyDeleteDifferent social and economic classes exist in America they just are not brought up by the government for voting reasons. When election day comes around the person running for president wants the most votes possible. He does not want to say that he will "help" one class over another because then he will losing votes. Taxes are a great example of something that is brought up in every election. The candidate says that he wants to lower taxes, but he never says how. When he is asked the question how he will do so it usually favors the upper class or the lower class, and that can take away the votes that could help give him a win. So there is absolutely classes in America they just are not talked about because people only want to get into power and higher places
ReplyDeleteThere are definitely classes in the United States and certainly a conflict amongst the classes. I think if you take away that label of “class” and then all men is equal then no conflict would exist. It’s not conflict like working class people walking down the street and they just punch a member of the capitalist class but I think there is envy. I think most of us would like to live in luxury, drive nice cars, and live in a nice big house. We are certainly blinded by class struggle, how often do you sit around and think about the people who are sleeping outside tonight or are not getting a meal to eat tonight. Some people do there very best to help out by giving clothes to shelters, food, money, etcetera. I like to watch MSNBC and CNN, those people on Fox get a little too turbulent, with elections coming up soon there is talk about how some candidates are buying themselves a seat in office. Because they have a lot of money they can use there own to buy ads and showcase there name more than what an opposing candidate can. I know the Iron Heel is a novel but some members of the capitalist class had a sort of ownership over the newspaper and kept out the words of the Bishop. Maybe somewhere today that is happening.
ReplyDeleteI believe, like everyone else, that there definitely are classes. Whether or not we walk around announcing to everyone which class we belong to doesn't really seem to matter as much now days. Yes, you can walk downtown in a big city or a little city like Winchester, and see a "bum" on the sidewalk passed out or going through trash, and you can probably put him in the lower class. just like you could see huge, expensive looking homes with way too expensive cars outside and realize they must have plenty of money, so they would belong to the upper class/capitalist class. But, I believe our classes, for the most part, work together, side-by-side every day. Our wages and hours may be different, but that doesn't make us want to quit....all the time. Some do try to express how they feel about the different classes and that they are treated differently then the more rich or more poor, but I think we have grown out of most of that judgement. don't get me wrong, I think there is plenty of room for us to continue to grow to reduce the class conflict, if that's what we call it. We also have those who have plenty and help out those who less fortunate, which means a lot, to me at least. Donating or volunteering is very hard to do and takes up a lot of time, yet there are people out there still willing to do it because they want others to have what they have as much as possible.
ReplyDeleteClass in the US today does exist, but it isn't as apparent as it was back then when classes first came about. Today, everyone sort of blends in throughout public and appearances. It is hard to point out someone who is more wealthy then someone who is working class. Even so, the working class has an equal opportunity to better themselves. Unlike back then, when you were considered working class because your parents were working class, today it doesn't really matter what your parents did. Each person has a chance to better their future. Living in the US gives everyone an equal chance in succeeding.
ReplyDelete--Sabina Nicewarner 03
There are always stories about how someone worked hard and achieved their goals through their determination. The stories that go untold are the ones involving hard working citizens and not really getting anywhere. Some of the poorest people in the country spend most of their time working and trying to pay the bills by working 2 or more jobs. Then there are the people who are born into their fortunes. Not everyone has equal chances. My dad owns a small business and would like me to take over when he is ready to retire. Beacause of the family I was born into, I have a chance that most people do not have. Regardless of hard work and determination, your fate may ultimatly be decided by the family you were born into. People who have nothing and are forced to work multiple jobs have nothing to show for their efforts. Classes definently do exist in our society.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I do believe that there are different classes of people. When you look at the different classes and see how everyone relates and gets along with eachother it is apparent that the different classes are not always harmoniously towards one another. There are people that go through life in the upper end of society who do not associate with the less fortunate people. A lot of the time this is done because some people feel emberrassed to find themselves associated with people of "lower class." There is definitely a conflict of interest when it comes to classes of people. A lot of people today usually have conflicts with the salaries people are being paid. There will always be different salaries for everyone no matter what. Each job is always going to get paid differently. For instance, it was said that guy without college degrees can make more money then women that do have a degree. Men getting paid more with less education would definitely be a conflict of interest to a lot of people in our society today. In my opinion, i could definitely see there being a conflict of interest when it comes to people's selfish nature. There will always be people that will step on others to get ahead in life. This kind of behavior is used because a lot of people's human nature is to survive instead of helping others first. We see examples of class conflict in the book the Iron Heel. In the generation that the book was based off of people did not switch from one class to the next. People where either lower class folks, middle class, or upper class. If you where born to a lower working class family then you would be considered in the lower class of society for the rest of your life. There was no improving in your status in society when it came to class back then. During this generation, people have the opportunity to go from one class to another throughout life instead of sticking to the one. People now are more able to accomplish and do better for themselves unlike back then. We choose the lifestyle that we live in. When it comes to who has more control it is definitely the upper class. The upper class with always have more control over everything compared to a lower class citizen. For example, the executives that you work for every day are considered to be in upper class. They tell you what you can make and what you have to do everyday at work, so it shows that they have more control on what goes on and how things are run and handled. When it comes to people identifying class struggles I feel that people are not blind. In my opinion, everyone realizes the struggles that every class goes through. For instance, if we didn't understand other people's struggles then we wouldn't have families willing to adopt teenage mother's babies when they know that they cannot take care of the child themselves. It can be a little vage when it comes to class affiliation but for the most part a lot of people can figure out what class they consider themselves to be in according to their lifestyle.
ReplyDeletePost on Freedom:
ReplyDeleteI think that the current situation in Somalia is gruesome. The people there live in fear that at any moment of any day, their life, or that of someone they love, could end without warning and without cause. The only thing I see that a place like Somalia has, that the United States does not, is the freedom to kill without a direct consequence from a governing body. In that way, the Somalian people are freer than the citizens of the US. But in my opinion, the lack of a unified government and the security that comes with it means that those people are not free. They are hindered in their everyday lives mostly by fear. I take pride in the fact that the United States has a military and other security bodies such as state and local police that help keep the security and safety of our nation. I would much rather live in a country that has, and enforces its laws through ethical means, then to attempt to have a life in a lawless land filled with tyrants and anarchical miscreants. The freedom that is exhibited by Max is not worth the risk of an uncontrolled anarchical society where people are free and life is fettered.
Post on Classes:
ReplyDeleteI believe that there are classes in America. But I also see that those class lines near the top are sharp and divided, while the lines in the middle and lower sections are beginning to blend. The upper upper class of American society houses individuals that make millions of dollars each year. These people have no idea what it is like to live on a budget and have no need to worry about what bills my come in the mail each month and which ones will possibly break the bank. They are the people who live in the lap of luxury and see nothing else. From there, the class line drops sharply to what I call the lower upper class. This is where the doctors and lawyers fall. They may make a few hundred thousand a year and are well off enough to live a full and happy economic life without much concern for falling behind and being in trouble of any monetary needs that may come their way. After that comes the middle class, which is in more recent years, starting to fade away. These are the people who work hard every day, and despite the fact that they went through college and have family and are trying their hardest, they can’t afford to do everything they dream of because the money they make will not allow for it. This is because the cost of living in the United States is continually increasing at a rate that the middle class salary cannot keep up with. For this reason, the middle class is being squeezed out of existence. The final class is the lower class and includes people who have the minimum wage jobs. These people put in their time and are rewarded with nothing. They live paycheck to paycheck and may have to choose food over a heating bill. The people who are capable of holding a job, but do not, and are being supported by taxpayer monies, as you can see, I have not placed in a group. These people do not deserve to be considered part of the American class society because they choose not to hold jobs. People that choose to let other take care of them rather than attempt to themselves should not be helped by the government. The only ones I feel should get the help are those who are physically, mentally, or emotionally unable to hold a job. I believe, that for the most part, classes in America tend to live in harmony with each other and accept what they and others have. There will always be conflicts of interests with people in different classes, or just wherever large groups of people are in general. I believe that people already know about the class struggle in the United States and they just need to accept that it is there and do what they need to do to address the problem and accept the outcome of their attempt no matter what happens. When people realize that classes will always exist in a capitalistic society, then they might be able to act to help those that will inevitably need the help when the time comes. As long as the United States in its current form lasts, there will always be classes and there will always be conflict between the classes.
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ReplyDeleteI believe that there are still social classes still in America, and I disagree with people who say that they are not defined; I think the lines are largely unspoken of. I also think the social classes in the US are defined slightly differently than they used to be. For example, today you are “upper” class if you are richer money-wise than the general population. Fame or celebrities are also a sign of upper-class, which usually goes hand in hand with money. In the early 1900’s, the upper- classes were defined by money and family. For example, Molly Brown who became famous because her role during the sinking of the Titanic. Her family became rich very fast due to stock shares. This elevated her social status rather quickly on the money sides of things, but she still came from a poor working-class background, which meant she was never fully accepted into the upper-class.
ReplyDeleteIn today’s society I believe the classes are defined by your house, your car, your clothes, in short, money. People today are also obsessed about fame, and trying to make oneself famous, which any number of TV shows such as American Idol, or America’s Got Talent could show you that. We as a country are constantly trying to better ourselves, or raise or “social” status; but unfortunately the majority of Americans will stay in the class they were born in. If you were born to parents without college degrees, chances are you will also not get a college degree and will be in the working class for the rest of your life. Chances are also that you will get a degree, putting a new cycle into motion, but these chances are slim to none.
The choices people face in life is whether or not they are willing to work hard, and better themselves by getting college degrees, thus raising themselves to a higher economic class. These economic classes do exist in America, people just don’t talk about them in everyday conversation, but these classes are still ingrained into our minds affecting the way we live our everyday lives.
-Jessica Lisk
Economic classes exist in the U.S. whether we talk about them or not. There is definitely not any harmony between the classes. The lower classes form unions, which then hold strikes against the capitalist to get better wages/working conditions. Capitalist have more control over politicians because they are usually the people who fund the them. Even though that politician talks more towards the middle class to get elected, they have the upper class more on their mind.
ReplyDeleteClasses most definitely do exist in the United States. There is always going to be some kind of struggle between the wealthy and the poor. The middle class is literally stuck in between the wealthy and the poor in regards to finding a way for everyone to live harmoniously. The selfish nature of people is absolutely an influence in social and economic classes. People are constantly trying to better themselves through material goods for example; most people think that owning the newest iPhone makes them seem wealthy, or a huge house, a fancy car, etc… These are just material goods that should not define who people are, but in our culture people value wealth by what you can own. Because of this, people are constantly struggling between classes to make themselves appear better.
ReplyDeleteCatherine Pevahouse
100.03
MWF 9:10
I am a firm beliver in we make are selves what we want to be.Yes there are diffently economic classes in the US. However,the ample amount of oppertunites sure does make it seem hard to belive people can be "stuck" in a class. I think people always can "move up" if they play there cards right.
ReplyDeleteI do believe classes exist in the USA and agree there are conflicts. I also agree that classes have power over politicans and the government, politicians are responsible for pleasing the classes and keeping them happy,which in return gets them elected. Plus, if the workers are unhappy, they may strike. Also, I may disagree with labeling people into classes, but this gives everyone something to work towards, ex: if someone was poor, but put forth effort to have a better life, he or she would try to find a better job and start saving money, maybe move to a better neighborhood and he or she would eventually move up the class ranks. This, I feel is a good thing.
ReplyDeleteEmily Suranno
PSCI 100.03
MWF 910
I think that classes are still present today, just less significant. The recent struggle of our economy may have something to do with that. People are becoming less focused on whose in what class and more focused on getting and maintaining a job for financial security. While some people have hardly lost anything, most of America is on edge about the looming unemployment situation. Sure, classes were once a dominate part in our history, but slavery and inequality was also prevalent in the past. We live in a different time with different priorities. The industrial revolution may have boosted the idea of having classes in that time. Everyone working in a factory was going to be labeled as lower class, the owner of the factory would be part of the upper class, and everyone else would fall somewhere in the middle. So yes, classes can still be recognized today but they hold less meaning then they did 100 years ago.
ReplyDeleteI think classes today are a lot less significant than they were 40 or so years ago. Back then you were pretty much born into a class. Whatever your parents did for a living, you were going to do for a living. There weren't many chances for lower class citizens to go to school and get an education and a well paying job. Today, the American dream is what you make of it. There are many chances for lower class people to go to college or a technological school and learn how to do something that they can translate into a well paying job. But, it may take a lot more work for a lower class person to go to college than a person in the capitalist class just because of how expensive paying for school can be.
ReplyDeleteCLasses today most definitely still exist but dont define us as americans. People are better at hiding what class they fall under and people are becoming less concerned about it. Americans are seeing each other as people instead of classes. And that i think is what America is made for.
ReplyDeleteEconomic classes exists. All of the economic classes are less talked about because when they are brought up people tend to get upset and it starts a war of classes. Today all of the classes are easier to notice than years in the past. Today you can tell who is rich and also who is poor. Most of the time you can tell when someone is rich or poor by how they dress and how they act. America has been made of classes since the United States was founded, there has always been rich people that control most things. Everyone in the America is defined in a class, its either one or one of the others whether we like it or not.
ReplyDeleteWilliam Sawyers
I think that classes still do exist in the United States, and there always have been. There has always been a huge struggle between the 3 classes; the wealthy, the middle, and the poor. The biggest struggle is between the wealthy and the poor. I believe that the poor is always trying to make their way up because they don’t feel good enough. I feel that most in the “poor class” feel that they need material goods to become part of the “middle class” or the “wealthy class” I feel like classes were a lot more strict 50 or so years ago, and are slowly getting better.
ReplyDeleteWith the current economic situation in the US, I believe that it is very clear that social classes do exist. With the economy being as it is, I think that it is negatively effecting the middle and lower class a great deal more than it is the upper class. Thus, undoubtedly creating a problem between the classes, especially the upper and lower classes. It is simply human nature to want to live comfortably with money, which also causes those without money to be envious of those with money. In conclusion, until the current economy begins to recover, the classes wll only continue to get more defined and the level of those living below the poverty line will continue to increase.
ReplyDeleteIs there a class system in the united states? Yes. Defiantly yes. You can walk down the street and tell whose in what classes by what they wear, how much energy they have, or how happy they are. The man who just worked 10 hours at sheetez walks out of his working class job a lot differently than the CEO parading around New York. This class system i think is more talked about in politics then Dr. Stump admits. I can easily picture Obama Talking about helping the "working class". Using that as a battle cry as politicans use freedom. If your not for the working class that means your for the business fat cats up top.
ReplyDeleteThere is definetly different class systems in the United States. There has always been a struggle between the rich, middle class, and working class. I believe it is harder to see because people do not talk about it as much as they once did. There is a vicious cycle that is going on today much is it did in the 18th and 19th century. The working class is paying for the goods they have to make and sell everyday at a much higher price than the cost to make the supply. The rich are continueing to get richer because of this. The middle class is not getting any breaks either the rich are profitting so much from spiking prices to the max. I think back to a year ago when the government was helping big companies stay afloat. The CEOs came in in their private jets to ask for support from the gov't. Yet the people they employ were being layed off left and right. There is something wrong with this picture. So yes i believe that class systems are still prevalent. The rich keep getting richer and the poor are finding a harder time to rise above the circumstances they are in.
ReplyDelete