When You See a Rich Person do you feel, anger, bitterness or jealousy?

[Connery]

Why should i feel bitterness or jealousy?

Life is so short... nothing is all good or all bad.... and then we are gone!

Why should I feel bitterness? So silly...

Exactly. Covetousness is not exactly a virtue either. So many better way to spend time.

Indeed, the more time spent minding another person's business the less time appreciating what you already have in your life and what you can gain.

 

[Bill Angel]

The topic brings to mind a quote by a famous American:
"We must make our choice. We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both."
-- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Dembitz Brandeis (1856-1941)

It's the increasing concentration of wealth that is of concern to me, as opposed to how much money one individual might have, or how they might live their life.

 

[arKangel]

Children are constantly taught that they should "go to college" so that they may become rich (granted, that is a scam for another thread).

The media constantly depicts the poor as deserving to be poor, and to be ridiculed.
The media constantly glorifies the rich to the point of deification.
Do you deny any of this?

And, well, you seem to be arguing that the rich should be worshiped and that they are beyond reproach.

Yeah. I deny all of it. Children are told to go to college to get a job. Nothing about being rich.

The media hates the rich. They don't at all portray the poor as deserving to be poor or ridiculed. Heck, they put them up on altars.

How is arguing that people shouldn't be attacked just for making money anywhere close to worshiping them?

Children are not shown statistics indicating wealth corresponding to "education" level?
Really?
No bother, that is a topic is for another thread.

Let's clear up the ignorance of media driven wealth-worship.

You have your own perceptions, that is clear enough.
Keep in mind that this is a civil discussion so please be objective.

Framing Class: Media Representations of Wealth and Poverty in America
Project MUSE - <i> Framing Class: Media Representations of Wealth and Poverty in America</i> (review)

...The upper class is generally framed positively in the media: they are composed of everyday individuals who are generous and caring and should be emulated. Even when members of the upper class are framed in a negative light, the media illustrates that upper class criminals have remarkably good lives.
In contrast, the poor and working classes are largely ignored in the media. When present, the poor and homeless are often discussed in terms of abstract statistics, and when a human face is cast, the frame depends on the demographics of the poor. Welfare recipients and the homeless are frequently depicted as violating middle-class values, while the media are generally more sympathetic when the discussion revolves around children, the elderly and the ill. This finding corroborates previous research on media frames and reflects the well-established ideological images of the deserving versus undeserving poor that underlie the structure of governmental and charitable programs.

 

[Luddly Neddite]

The topic brings to mind a quote by a famous American:
"We must make our choice. We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both."
-- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Dembitz Brandeis (1856-1941)

It's the increasing concentration of wealth that is of concern to me, as opposed to how much money one individual might have, or how they might live their life.

Very good. And true for me as well.

I've done well in my life and with any luck my money will last longer than my life. I'm healthy, I have a great marriage and two beautiful homes. I'm not wealthy by any but its the people who have been hurt by toxic teepotter pubs and who will be kept down by their policies - that's what bothers me.

Everyone should have the same opportunities I had but that's not the way it is anymore.

There's really no reason, no excuse for the theft of our country that we're seeing by people like the Kochs. Those of you with young children - think about what they are inheriting from the koch monster. What wealth they get from you -- that's it. They will never be able to work their way any further up the ladder.

 

[arKangel]

... people like the Kochs.

So do you have the same disdain for Goldman Sachs or Cecile Richards?

 

[Procrustes Stretched]

Sometimes...

When I See a Rich Person I feel nothing? I don't give a rat's butt about people's income when I meet them. When I want to raise or lower taxes it isn't about any one individual

 

[RandallFlagg]

Interesting discussion. My Wife's Uncle died a couple of years back. My Wife wasn't particularly close with her Uncle ( we have lived in another state for all of our married lives - 39 years) so we rarely got the chance to see him, but did on occasion. He always struck me as a lonely man.

According to my Wife, he had been spurned by the woman of his dreams (rather publicly) when he proposed during a family Christmas party a long, long time ago. apparently, it upset him so badly that he, for the most part, became very reclusive. Through himself into his work and amassed a great deal of money ( none of us knew).

We returned after the funeral and never gave it another thought. About 3 weeks later, we get a call from an Attorney's office who were acting as executor of his estate. He had left all his worldly belongings to my Wife, her two Sisters and her Brother. They each received a check for $300,000.

Was this man "rich"? In my humble opinion, no. He never had a family, a Wife or anyone to share his life with.

 

[Procrustes Stretched]

Interesting discussion. My Wife's Uncle died a couple of years back. My Wife wasn't particularly close with her Uncle ( we have lived in another state for all of our married lives - 39 years) so we rarely got the chance to see him, but did on occasion. He always struck me as a lonely man.

According to my Wife, he had been spurned by the woman of his dreams (rather publicly) when he proposed during a family Christmas party a long, long time ago. apparently, it upset him so badly that he, for the most part, became very reclusive. Through himself into his work and amassed a great deal of money ( none of us knew).

We returned after the funeral and never gave it another thought. About 3 weeks later, we get a call from an Attorney's office who were acting as executor of his estate. He had left all his worldly belongings to my Wife, her two Sisters and her Brother. They each received a check for $300,000.

Was this man "rich"? In my humble opinion, no. He never had a family, a Wife or anyone to share his life with.

who says an estate of that size makes somebody rich?

 

[RandallFlagg]

Interesting discussion. My Wife's Uncle died a couple of years back. My Wife wasn't particularly close with her Uncle ( we have lived in another state for all of our married lives - 39 years) so we rarely got the chance to see him, but did on occasion. He always struck me as a lonely man.

According to my Wife, he had been spurned by the woman of his dreams (rather publicly) when he proposed during a family Christmas party a long, long time ago. apparently, it upset him so badly that he, for the most part, became very reclusive. Through himself into his work and amassed a great deal of money ( none of us knew).

We returned after the funeral and never gave it another thought. About 3 weeks later, we get a call from an Attorney's office who were acting as executor of his estate. He had left all his worldly belongings to my Wife, her two Sisters and her Brother. They each received a check for $300,000.

Was this man "rich"? In my humble opinion, no. He never had a family, a Wife or anyone to share his life with.

who says an estate of that size makes somebody rich?

Oh, believe me, I know what you mean. In today's realm of bankers, politicians and Wall Street speculators and, not to mention these "superstars" of 16-18 year olds who after putting out an album or two are suddenly worth 40 million - his measely life's worth of savings really wasn't "huge" by any stretch of the imagination but it was a damn sight more than I have been able to accumulate!

But all kidding aside, the poor old guy died a lonely, broken down old man, never experiencing having a family, watching them grow and all the ancillary joys that accompany that. I'll take my family any day, all day, 24/7......

 

[Mr Natural]

Rich or poor, an asshole's an asshole.

 

[SherriMunnerlyn]

I feel none of those emotions for that person. . I feel Pity for them!

 

[flacaltenn]

We are being taught to hate the rich?
Where?

What I see here is an attitude more akin to "we must worship the rich".

Really? Where? With everyone demanding the so called rich "pay their own share" despite never defining what the fair share is? With the demonizing of corporations as though they are pure evil? With the stereotype that anyone who earns money did it through fraud and is just trying to rip you off?

Who exactly advocates that we worship the rich? I dont see why not thinking they are the evil scum of the universe some pretend them to be is worshiping. I don't see why it's bad to want to aspire to wealth, per se. Money is a necessity in the world we live in. We can all obtain it through service to others and use it to serve others.

Why is that bad?

Children are constantly taught that they should "go to college" so that they may become rich (granted, that is a scam for another thread).

The media constantly depicts the poor as deserving to be poor, and to be ridiculed.
The media constantly glorifies the rich to the point of deification.
Do you deny any of this?

And, well, you seem to be arguing that the rich should be worshiped and that they are beyond reproach.

The media offers up Honey Boo Boo AND the Kardashians. They are an equal opportunity employer of folks that volunteer to be mocked for money..

Pointing out the rich DO contribute their fair share is not worship. However, strapping them down as an involuntary blood donors and villifying them is immoral.

 

[RandallFlagg]

I can only reply to your post by adding...look at post #64. A man who admits that he has done well in his life (and good for him, I applaud his success) yet then turns his feigned "anger" on folks, like himself, who have had success in life.

Mr Neddite, in your post, you celebrate having 2 homes (and, again, I congratulate you) so why not donate one of those homes to that guy on the corner who claims he "needs help"??

Thats what I thought. You would rather someone else "give up something" before you. Before you cast stones, look into that mirror buster.

 

[auditor0007]

Every liberal in America hates rich people unless they obtain that wealth through entertainment...then somehow because they earn a living playing the parts of make believe people - they are given great adoration and respect, and their words are revered.
Go figure.

Stupid statement, and untrue. Sure there are some that may be that way, but it's a small percentage.

 

[RandallFlagg]

Every liberal in America hates rich people unless they obtain that wealth through entertainment...then somehow because they earn a living playing the parts of make believe people - they are given great adoration and respect, and their words are revered.
Go figure.

Stupid statement, and untrue. Sure there are some that may be that way, but it's a small percentage.

Perhaps it's a tad off base, but untrue? Doubtful. Every limousine liberal in the US tells us how "evil" the rich are - while they are chauffeured about Rodeo drive. Again, and I believe this to be true, rich liberals hold themselves to a completely different standard than other "rich" folks.

Ask George Soros.

 

[Blooper]

Every liberal in America hates rich people unless they obtain that wealth through entertainment...then somehow because they earn a living playing the parts of make believe people - they are given great adoration and respect, and their words are revered.
Go figure.

Stupid statement, and untrue. Sure there are some that may be that way, but it's a small percentage.

Perhaps it's a tad off base, but untrue? Doubtful. Every limousine liberal in the US tells us how "evil" the rich are - while they are chauffeured about Rodeo drive. Again, and I believe this to be true, rich liberals hold themselves to a completely different standard than other "rich" folks.

Ask George Soros.

Historically, we've seen that contradiction a lot - the break-aways who maintain their the perks of "high society", while using their wealth for measures against their own class. That, perhaps to a less hyperbolic extent, is where you get most of the world's democratic intelligentsia.

Occupy tried to mitigate it by producing a more lifestyle oriented politic. Ultimately, however, it didn't lead to a whole lot, notably lacking long term, cultural significance.

So in my mind, its a matter of trying to reconcile those two groups.

 

[Flopper]

Stupid statement, and untrue. Sure there are some that may be that way, but it's a small percentage.

Perhaps it's a tad off base, but untrue? Doubtful. Every limousine liberal in the US tells us how "evil" the rich are - while they are chauffeured about Rodeo drive. Again, and I believe this to be true, rich liberals hold themselves to a completely different standard than other "rich" folks.

Ask George Soros.

Historically, we've seen that contradiction a lot - the break-aways who maintain their the perks of "high society", while using their wealth for measures against their own class. That, perhaps to a less hyperbolic extent, is where you get most of the world's democratic intelligentsia.

Occupy tried to mitigate it by producing a more lifestyle oriented politic. Ultimately, however, it didn't lead to a whole lot, notably lacking long term, cultural significance.

So in my mind, its a matter of trying to reconcile those two groups.

I know a lot of pretty wealthy people, some quite well. Some are miserable and some are happy. Some have liberal views and some have conservative views. Some are religious and some aren't. If you try to label people by their wealth, race, or ethnicity you're going to be wrong a lot of the time.

Our beliefs about people of a given group are formed mostly by the media which is unfortunate because the media does not report the norms but the exceptions. If you really get to know people from different social classes, you'll find you have a lot in common.

 

[flacaltenn]

Perhaps it's a tad off base, but untrue? Doubtful. Every limousine liberal in the US tells us how "evil" the rich are - while they are chauffeured about Rodeo drive. Again, and I believe this to be true, rich liberals hold themselves to a completely different standard than other "rich" folks.

Ask George Soros.

Historically, we've seen that contradiction a lot - the break-aways who maintain their the perks of "high society", while using their wealth for measures against their own class. That, perhaps to a less hyperbolic extent, is where you get most of the world's democratic intelligentsia.

Occupy tried to mitigate it by producing a more lifestyle oriented politic. Ultimately, however, it didn't lead to a whole lot, notably lacking long term, cultural significance.

So in my mind, its a matter of trying to reconcile those two groups.

I know a lot of pretty wealthy people, some quite well. Some are miserable and some are happy. Some have liberal views and some have conservative views. Some are religious and some aren't. If you try to label people by their wealth, race, or ethnicity you're going to be wrong a lot of the time.

Our beliefs about people of a given group are formed mostly by the media which is unfortunate because the media does not report the norms but the exceptions. If you really get to know people from different social classes, you'll find you have a lot in common.

Then why do the leftists take every opportunity to point out how "they don't pay their fair share" and how "they didn't build that".. Every freaking time he's in front of a microphone talking about economics and jobs --- that's his premiere issue. That's also his VISION on taxes and deficit. It's like a one-note samba for "the revolution" to remake America in the Progressive image..

 

[Flopper]

Historically, we've seen that contradiction a lot - the break-aways who maintain their the perks of "high society", while using their wealth for measures against their own class. That, perhaps to a less hyperbolic extent, is where you get most of the world's democratic intelligentsia.

Occupy tried to mitigate it by producing a more lifestyle oriented politic. Ultimately, however, it didn't lead to a whole lot, notably lacking long term, cultural significance.

So in my mind, its a matter of trying to reconcile those two groups.

I know a lot of pretty wealthy people, some quite well. Some are miserable and some are happy. Some have liberal views and some have conservative views. Some are religious and some aren't. If you try to label people by their wealth, race, or ethnicity you're going to be wrong a lot of the time.

Our beliefs about people of a given group are formed mostly by the media which is unfortunate because the media does not report the norms but the exceptions. If you really get to know people from different social classes, you'll find you have a lot in common.

Then why do the leftists take every opportunity to point out how "they don't pay their fair share" and how "they didn't build that".. Every freaking time he's in front of a microphone talking about economics and jobs --- that's his premiere issue. That's also his VISION on taxes and deficit. It's like a one-note samba for "the revolution" to remake America in the Progressive image..

You do realize that Left and Right are purely subjective terms and someone may lean left on some issues and right on others. The reality is that there are really very few people that meet all criteria for classification of Left or Right. Hate to bust your bubble.

 

[Rozman]

Kim Kardashian has made a fortune doing what exactly?.....
Has any of what she has done contributed in anyway to make society better?....

But people made her rich.
Do I hate her,envy her,approve of what she does...

Nope.
But no one is twisting anyone's arm to buy whatever she does.

I try to make as much money as I can,save as much as I can and try to invest as best as I can
to have as much possible when my working days are done.