Ah, that discreet charm of positivism - the closer to the protokolsatze or their logical consequences, the better. There is no other way to know the hidden injuries of class, but to experience them directly.
Eastern European intelligentsia suffered unspeakable deprivation of status and privilege that their Western and American classmates could liberally enjoy, and the post 1989 neoliberalism ended that suffering. As to the workers, farmers, retirees and assorted parasitic elements idolized under the "real socialism" and supported by hardworking symbol manipulators - well, they might have lost their entitlements but gained the freedom to pray for everything they want, even healthcare and housing.
Indeed, being determines consciousness, and class position determines being.
wojtek