What Form of Elitism

Which spending habits of the 1% are deemed acceptable behavior?

Billionaires frequently show up to work dressed in jeans and T-shirts (black preferred). Typically live in small towns, drive 10 year old cars, and eat in diners. While it's acceptable for someone making $200,000+ a year to spend money on any room in the house formerly used by servants. But vulgar to spend on adult toys such as fast cars for the pleasure it might bring.

New America - Acceptable/Unacceptable Behaviour

This is the first installation of what will become a series of observations. My motivation comes from a New York Times Op-Ed by Paul V. Kane.

It is acceptable to display your fitness inequality by wearing tight clothing (or not) that reveals buns of steal and ripped abs. It is a display of a superior workout ethic, dietary superiority (even if it includes the use of steroids), self-discipline, and reproductive potential.

It is unacceptable to make a display of moral and ethical superiority, after all isn't it a subjective matter? It is out of bounds to boast of chastity, integrity, or honesty. Respect that everyone is morally equal simply because our moral and ethical tastes may differ.

Political extremism - rampant

Yesterday, while listening to an NPR interview about the recent firing of Shirley Sherrod from the Agriculture Department, it becomes clear there is no compromise position being voiced in the media, just a string of accusations. So the person being interviewed is the former editor of the leading review journal on media. During the interview he repeatedly refers to conservatives as if all conservatives are radicals and all conservative media are the demons from hell, specifically FOX News. While never an unkind word or accusation is aimed at liberal Democrats or liberal media no matter where they stand on the scale of intolerance.

And then I realize this dialog is the same as many conversations among people I know, and it's a common theme in politics. The easiest, simplest thing to do is complain and point fingers - it solves nothing. Where are the solutions people? We put way to much faith in "leaders" the majority have more ego than intelligence.

So the question is multifaceted, did a polarized media start a social condition in which we have no tolerance or interest in compromise or middle ground? Is the political system a result of social change or is the change in our society a reflection of the political system. Should we make the Congress and Senate solve legislative boondoggles (which is all we currently have) through binding arbitration?

What Next

Historically when we have an active war the economy does very well. Not this time and we have 2 going! Now I'm all for bringing troops home but then what happens to an already bad economy with high unemployment? Some number of these troops will leave the military head into an economy with few job prospects.

Another change appears to be taking place and that is few "traditional" employment opportunities. By that I mean my interviews and applications have been for short term contract positions or part time employment. Ahh no benefits and little stability. What impact will that have on traditional families - reduce the numbers even more, no doubt about that outcome. 

So yesterday I'm looking for a gas station on a secondary road without many choices anywhere nearby. I come to the likely intersection where there are 2 choices, one is BP and the other is Lukoil. SO, do I support the environment destroyers and company of questionable ethics and broken promises from England or the Russians that basically jailed a successful entrepreneur so they could nationalize the business and also planted spies in our country?

Which would you choose and why?