I don't understand what you mean by exploiting others?
I employ a number of salespeople
now. They are all on commission. Some of my people I pay about $2,000/week, I have one guy who is on food stamps, not because he doesn't have the skill, but because he is lazy.
In any case I provide livelihoods for a number of people. I have to pay quarterly taxes to the government which are in the five digits.
How is this exploitation?
My story probably is rare. Some people won't "make it" but all have a chance to "make it".
In my case I was a door to door salesman on commission only.
The best thing to do for poor people that are not lazy is to give them opportunities. The way they get opportunities is by allowing the people that create jobs the ability to create more jobs. Making it more expensive for them to do business has the opposite affect.
What exactly do you mean by "leveling the playing field"?
I don't believe in taking people down. It doesn't help you one bit if others are brought down. The only way you will profit is if more people are brought up.
I want everyone to go up.
Once again, I have the greatest sympathy for those who truely try and struggle. And of course I have nothing for sympathy that can't work.
The problem is that there is a very large chunk that don't try and will not take "anything" to survive. They would rather live off the government.
How many people do you know that would go door to door on commission only? I bet not many. I did, and I had a MBA.
You do what you need to do and you never know what it will lead to.
I didn't necessarily mean you were exploiting people, but in a way we do. I employ people as well, and we take a profit out of what they do, don't we? If they don't produce in a way more valuable than their pay, out the door they go, eh? But it's not what I meant.
Lower class people are exploited constantly. Every minute of every day. You pay rent that somebody makes a massive profit on. You make a car payment to a bank that's making a fortune on you. You go to work and your boss takes a profit out of what you do. You go to the store and someone takes a profit out of your purchases. You're probably in debt, so your paying exhorbanant<SP> interest on your credit cards. If you're late on the card your rate goes up to a level that would be considered usury a few decades ago.
People pick over your every move, nickel and diming away at what little you have. The only thing that entitles them to this? THEY HAVE THE MONEY. They own the apartment complex. Had the money to loan for the car. Had the funds to put forward for the CC. Whatever the case. Look at the credit reporting system? You're broke, you're credit sucks, so you pay higher rates. You're late making payments because you have no money, NO PROBLEM FRIEND, you can just pay a little more money!
I appreciate your intelligent response, although I don't agree with it.
I'm thinking how to phrase this to make it rather gentle.
People who own businesses and own apartment buildings are people too. Just because they own a business doesn't mean that they are making a living or have a lot of money.
Most small businesses fail.
http://www.sba.gov/advo/stats/sbfaq.pdf
What is the survival rate for new firms?
Seven out of ten new employer firms last at least two years, and about half survive five years. More specifically, according to new Census data, 69 percent of new employer establishments born to new firms in 2000 survived at least two years, and 51 percent survived five or more years. Firms born in 1990 had very similar survival rates. With most firms starting small, 99.8 percent of the new employer establishments were started by small firms. Survival rates were similar across states and major industries.
People who own apartment buildings can get foreclosed on too.
The difference is if you lose your job, you lost a job, when a business fails, a business owner is losing a big investment and often can now be in large debt as a result.
Yes, if you own a business, and let's say an employee sells a vase that cost $5, the employee doesn't get that $5. Why? Because you also have to pay from that $5 the employee's wages, rent, utilities, taxes, and who knows what else. You also have taken a great deal of risk maintaining a small business.
Your landlord can charge you $600, and yes the landlord does make a profit. What happens though if the apartment has a number of vacancies. The landlord can soon go into foreclosure and lose the building.
These people are human too. Many of them can have a lot of financial trouble as well. They just probably have more zeros attached.
I
've been through this, I guess you have too if your story is true. What cons, particularly older cons have lost touch with, is just how bad it is now. The hard-working over-achiever that would've been rich and retired by 50 back in the day has to work that hard just to survive, just to scrape by, and even then it's tough. And it's getting worse. Costs of living, healthcare, insurance of all kinds, rents, food-- All rising far, far faster than wages. So where's the money going? Any rudimentary graph about wealth disparity will show, it's been going up, up, up to the upper class.[/I]And now there are no jobs, by in large due to outsourcing. That's the elephant in the room that nobody wants to discuss, because reworking our trade agreements.. Tariffs... controlling outsourcing... That would be Socialism! <GASP!>
Anyway, that's my take as somebody who has seen both sides. Wealth begets wealth, and poverty begets poverty. It's headed somewhere very ugly if we let it follow it's current trajectory.
One last thing I forgot to add... You say you "Want everyone to go up." But everyone can't go up. You going up means someone else went down, and the higher you go, the farther others are going down. That's the way it works. Wishful thinking, and I believe that you believe it, but it's a mirage. There is a finite amount of wealth to go around.
I don't understand why you feel that if I succeed someone failed.
I was a salesperson doing door to door sales on commission only.
I created my own business doing the same thing, selling the same product.
I now employ a bunch of salespeople. Some of them I pay $2,000/week.
Who failed because I succeeded?
I am providing livelihoods to people who may not have jobs. I provide a product to my customers, and I pay a lot of taxes. How exactly is that bad?
I was struggelling for over 10 years. As I said I was nervous buying lettuce in the grocery store. For a time, my wife and I lived in my brother in law's basement. We paid him rent for it.
Yeah, it is tough out there, but it's not impossible. The defeatist attitude bothers me. If that's what people believe that's what will happen.
I agree with you regarding credit cards. IMO it's legalized loan sharking without the actual leg breaking.
I want to stress again that I have the greatest sympathy for those who can't work like the elderly, and those who are truely seeking work, and aren't too proud to take a job that they feel isn't at their level.
I have disgust for those who would rather live off the system than work hard, and I have encoutered a lot of them.
This is America. Anything is possible.
Just as a side note. I mentioned that I used to get nervous buying lettuce in the grocery store I know feel wonderful that I buy my wife flowers once a week
Someone like you would much prefer to prance around some soup kitchen and preach to the homeless. "LOOK AT ME, LOOK AT ME"!!!
