[WS:] Hardly surprising. Many years ago I gave an assignment of finding examples of deskilling (per Braverman's argument) in student's everyday life. Only one student, a female with actual work experience, wrote an excellent paper documenting deskilling at her workplace (a retail outlet) - most other thought I was a liberal loon spewing anti-American propaganda. A few of them did not have any work experience, but most of them did - they just did not relate to it. They thought of it as temporary jobs that "others" do - and they expected to land cushy corporate jobs after graduation. The idea that "white collar" jobs can be deskilled simply did not register with these folks - they thought of it as "liberal whining" about "successful" people.
The myth of upward mobility for everyone is well entrenched in the US population, even the working class. Their reference group is the upper class - hope that "I will strike it rich" springs eternal - and if someone does not make it it is either personal fault or bad luck. Most people (save a few intellectuals) do not identify themselves with those below themselves on the social status ladder, and simply ignore any evidence of their plight.
Of course, such attitudes are not limited to the US, but in the US they are reinforced by the residential and transportation apartheid system that is much more pronounced than in most other developed countries. Socio-economic groups are physically separated in everyday life to much greater degree than elsewhere (or even in places like New York City,) so they have little chance of interaction providing grounds for common identity.
Wojtek
On Fri, Nov 5, 2010 at 8:22 AM, Alan Rudy <alan.rudy at gmail.com> wrote:
> Last Spring (Fall 2009?), the NYTs' Class Matters series reported that
> upwards of 6 million citizens have no cash income except foodstamps (just
> had my Soc 100 students read it - no traction at all, despite the fact that
> the Times preferentially provided accounts of American "success stories"
> "lowered" to these conditions), but O and the DLC are gonna double down on
> NCLB... whoo hoo!
>
>
> On Fri, Nov 5, 2010 at 2:57 AM, <123hop at comcast.net> wrote:
>
> > sobering
> >
> >
> http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2010/11/04/some-14-of-us-uses-food-stamps/
> >
> > Joanna
> > ___________________________________
> > http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk
> >
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