I grew up in a low income family and as a young adult I am seeing that sometimes economic opportunities are just unfair, that’s just the harsh truth. I know a lot of people who are wealthy and talk and act like they’re wealthy, it is quite obvious they did not grow up like me, but often they kind of try to act like they too are struggling when there is proof they are not, when we are literally in different tax brackets. Can soemone explain why this phenomenon is so common?
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What do you mean “acting like they too are struggling”?
What’s the point of this sub if every post is to be deleted by mods ? Genuinely curious.
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https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22148992/
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797610387613
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0010027720303772?via%3Dihub
It’s not about how much they have, it’s how much they have in comparison to others. So if someone makes $300,000, but they see others making $500,000, and then there are billionaires, they don’t feel like it’s that much.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4222713/
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This is equivalent to “passing,” because in many places, the wealthy are the one group that it’s still socially acceptable to discriminate against publicly.
It’s a pervasive phenomenon, especially in times of economic difficulty or inequality, called “upward classism.“
Imagine calling any other social group “arrogant” or “leaches” or a “drain on society.” It’s just not done. But many people don’t give a second thought to stereotyping the wealthy this way, which can not only lead to social discomfort, but also victimization. It motivates some wealthy people to try to pass as less wealthy, or at least make themselves more relatable.
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Because it’s considered rude to flaunt your wealth. If they did express how wealthy they are, wouldn’t you be angry at them for that? It’s kind of a no-win situation.
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What do you think someone who lives in poverty with a single mom who is on drugs thinks about your situation? Or someone in a country where you can barely get food. They look at you like you hit the lottery. See how it works?
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Throughout history poor, violent, and jealous people have sought to murder the wealthy en masse to satisfy their darkest desires. It is safer to be a man of the people.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Revolution
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Because Capitalism… supply and demand. If you have “rich” people in your area you raise the prices of everything. Especially houses.
Top 10% earners by household in Canada are 125K a year. But to afford a house in Vancouver or Toronto you basically have to make 200-225 K a year.
So it’s a catch 22 as the top earning jobs are in the city but if you live in the city you can’t afford to live in the city. But the largest amount of people live around the cities.
And this is why “rich people” feel poor. My household makes 200K a year. We were barely able to get approved for our mortgage… so sure am I accumulating more wealth than most people? Yes. But do I feel wealthy? Not until my house is paid off and it frees up my disposable income in retirement 🤷♂️
I felt “richer” living in a rural area working seasonal work splitting cheap rent in an apartment with my friends.
It’s not a great answer but most people in higher tax brackets are house poor these days.
And for reference we’re not from here (BC)… I moved here for the opportunities. I’m from a poorer part of the country (NB) and my family is distinctly middle class. My kids as a “top 10%” household have less than I had as a middle class kid growing up in a single income household… both me and my wife work good well earning government / healthcare jobs. So yes I can understand being rich and feeling poor.
Boils back to exploitation, economics and capitalism. Read the city news article and check stats Canada if you don’t believe me about the top 10% earning households.
I think this question boils back to economics more than Social Science though.
https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2024/08/20/vancouver-real-estate-income/
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You know why they’re wealthy ? It’s because they don’t waste money on shit that doesn’t matter and more than likely they don’t give a fuck what anyone else thinks of them .
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You want the brutal truth? Nobody wants to be pestered for money, investments etc they’re unlikely to get back
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People who live paycheck to paycheck may feel better if they have an iPhone or Mercedes or gold caps on their teeth instead of natural look ones. https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterubel/2017/02/28/do-luxury-brands-benefit-from-income-inequality/
People with enough money they don’t worry about money might just do what they want with out concern for appearances; people with money who need to be showy are probably not the best of people or maybe just unhappy or maybe were poor earlier int heir lives.
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