The 1% are Not Your Problem: You are.

Okay I’m irritated.

I’ve been seeing these posts all over facebook about the 99% and the 1% and how the 1% are so unfair for keeping their money to themselves. They talk about how it should be spread more equally amongst the people. Basically all your normal communist and socialist propaganda that brainwashes the masses. They are talking about raising the minimum wage and raising taxes on the rich. About how evil these people are for keeping their money and not sharing it. They talk about how CEOs only sit on their butts all day taking phone calls. How they are only in the position they are in because their family spent a bunch of money to send them to Ivy League schools (as if sending your children to the best schools is a bad thing.)

First of all…

Raising the minimum wage will do nothing for the minimum wage earner. All that will happen is that those who have earned their way out of minimum wage by getting performance raises will be losing however much extra they are making because the prices of EVERYTHING will go up.

If the government taxes the rich more, you won’t see any of that money. And what happened to equality here in America? Why should someone have to pay a higher tax rate just because they make more money? They are already paying way more money into taxes than low income earners! Sure they may take advantage of tax loopholes in order to pay less of a percentage than the lower paid people are, but guess what? They are still paying many thousands or even millions more into taxes than you are!

Secondly…

Most people who are in the top 1% actually earned their way there. They worked hard, sometimes working two and three jobs at a time. They saved their money instead of spending it on fun stuff, and then they reinvested it. They didn’t blow their money on things they didn’t absolutely need. They made opportunities for themselves, rather than waiting around for one to come their way. And even if they did come from a rich family who paid for the best education, so what? Just because someone’s family actually cares enough about their children that they send them to the best schools, doesn’t make them bad or evil. Since when is it okay to vilify someone for doing things the right way? Don’t you want what’s best for your children? Don’t you want to give them the best start in life?  Why then is it wrong for a family to send their child to a good school that will ensure they will get a good paying job?

Thirdly…

Why, just because someone knows how to handle their money instead of wasting it like a lot of the people who stay stuck in the lower class, is it their job to share their wealth?

That line of logic really gets under my skin. I grew up dirt poor. When I became old enough to start working, I made up my mind to not make the same mistakes as my parents. I worked hard, and lived beneath my means, spending as little money as I could to get by, and setting the rest aside. Am I rich? No, but I do have enough money that I don’t have to worry about how I will get by and how I will make ends meet. I am not living paycheck to paycheck anymore, and that is because I was smart with my money. Now because of the amount of money I have, I have friends and family members who like to blow their money on toys and alcohol and other junk for themselves, and when they run into a problem financially, they automatically think it’s my job to take care of them. I have money, so I should help. Bullcrap! I worked hard and sacrificed and saved in order to get to where I’m at. I didn’t get to party and have all the fun that they did. Why should it be my responsibility to take care of them just because they don’t care enough to take care of themselves?

That is the same logic behind saying that the 1% should spread their money amongst the poor. I’ve been poor and I know how they think. This is such a sad generation we live in. Everyone in this country has so much opportunity if only they would work hard and manage their money right. Instead, people want to “have fun” and “be happy” all the time. They want to do nothing to earn it, and then feel like they are entitled to have more just for being themselves. You don’t get to have better just because you want it. Turn that want into your driving force, make it a goal to get to where you can have more, and you will be able to achieve it.

Fourthly…

If you’re unhappy with how much you’re earning at your job, then QUIT! Quit your job and go into business for yourself. Then you can make more money. The only reason they pay that low, is because people are willing to work for that much. My brother got sick of making like $8 an hour where he was working, so he quit his job, went and paid what he needed to the state in order to get licensed to contract his work out. Now he contracts himself to his previous employer for $35 an hour. You are not stuck in the life you were born with. If you don’t like it, then change it. Oh, and by the way, another reason you’re getting paid so little, is when you are making like $8 an hour, your employer is paying something like $25 an hour because of taxes and insurance.

Fifthly…

The only reason that CEOs make so much money is because the 99% are willing to buy their products or services. If you have a problem with how much a CEO makes, then the answer is simple, don’t buy their products and services. Instead of shopping at big name stores like Walmart and Costco where you can save lots of money while making their CEOs filthy rich, shop at local mom-and-pop shops where you will spend a little more, but you will be distributing wealth more equally. Stop giving people your money and then whining about how much they make. That’s just plain stupid! You have other options.

And the only reason you are being paid minimum wage, is because you are willing to work for them for such low wages. Nobody is being forced to work for those wages. If every person refused to accept minimum wage when being interviewed for a job, then guess what? They would have to raise the wages for that position.

Most jobs, when you can highlight to them accomplishments you have made on the job that have helped the company’s bottom line, it makes you look more valuable, and they are usually willing to negotiate a higher salary. And that’s the case whether you are trying to get more money where you already work, or are applying for a new job. I haven’t made minimum wage in several years, simply because I value my time more than that, and I apply for jobs that pay better.

And guess what else? CEOs don’t just get paid to sit on their butts all day. They get paid to make their companies a lot of money. People love to complain about how their bosses don’t do anything, but they are actually working harder than you. I used to complain about how little work my bosses did, until I was actually promoted into a supervisory position, and  learned what the bosses really had to do and put up with. The higher you move up the corporate ladder, the more work, stress and time you have to deal with. You end up with more responsibility. You are the one who gets in trouble for any mistakes the people working under you make. You end up putting more hours in because you are being paid salary instead of hourly, which means you get paid the same if you work 40 hours in a week, as you would if you work 80. So more hours at work, less time with friends and family, less time having fun, more pressure from stress means that you should get paid more than a low-level employee who only has to worry about showing up on time and doing their 8 hours and going home.

And last, but certainly not least…

Perhaps you should stop using the “we are the 99%” bullcrap, and go with something like “we are the 10%”, because those of us who understand how the system really works and have earned our way into a better life really don’t care to be included in your whining and complaining. We know what it takes to make things better. We work hard, and we do it without complaining. And because of that, we get to enjoy the fruits of our labor, which is more money and more freedom.

You have two choices: you can either whine and complain about how bad your life is, and be jealous and blame the rich, or you can take control of your life and make it better.

If you really want to complain about how bad your life is, then perhaps you should visit a third world country and see how things are there, it will certainly change your perspective. Go to Africa where you can watch children literally starve to death. Many of these terrible rich people are actually philanthropists who give away a lot of their money to help feed these children. How much have you done for them? Perhaps rather than complain about how much others aren’t doing, take a look at yourself and see what you’re not doing. If you want the world to change, then true change starts with YOU!