Paul Papadeas wrote:
> Just a personal story...
>
> My boss (a VP) at a Construction Management firm (that I work for) dropped by my office to discuss politics of all things! I guess he was just shooting the breeze. He has 40 years in the business (at age 65), highly educated, an architect by trade and probably has a base salary of close to half a million dollars per year.
>
> ....
>
> This is the consensus attitude that embodies America's corporate class?
Maybe it is. I live in a hi-tech bubble in California and don't hear all
that much of this kind of shit. On the other hand, the worst kind of
anti-immigrant bashing I've heard recently comes from an old friend, a
Romanian, who emigrated to the U.S. in her late twenties in 1974. "Why
can't they learn English; why are they taking away our jobs? etc."
Really gross stuff. Especially coming from her. But then you all
remember that Chris Rock routine about who are the worst racists in
America?.... "Old, black men."
I'm not sure what to take comfort in. That the corporate class is a fraction of the population....that everybody has just been brainwashed....
In the hi-tech corporate world I revolve in I say exactly what I think -- a polite but passionate socialist rant. People begin by being shocked and end up nodding their heads. I don't think I'll change anything, but I think it's always good to say this stuff out loud and show that there's nothing to be afraid of in just talking about this stuff.
The last time I had lunch with my stockbroker I said "Basically, the way it works is that they want to privatize profits and socialize losses!" He nodded, repeated the phrase, and then wrote it down to remember. He thought it was a great insight.
Of course, he's a black man from Tanzania, so he's more open minded than most.
Joanna