Why is working for money considered wage slavery?

Leftists always point out that making money for yourself is wage slavery because you are forced to work to pay your bills instead spending all day doing whatever you want without making money or providing for your family.

I really don't understand this type of mentality, is it the hidden communism that is in all leftists to say this? The ideal world for most leftists and some won't even admit this, but they want pure communism. Just like those of us on the right would love pure capitalism. None of those systems are even possible but it still spreads through the leftist circles like crazy probably because they are more idealistic about the world while the right tends to be more practical (sometimes).

Maybe if minimum wage was just a bit higher, it wouldn't feel like wage slavery.

Just a thought.

reply to post by jjf3rd77




Because wages aren't keeping up with the cost of living. If every spare moment is spent working just to make ends meet, just to eat and keep a roof over your head or your health, that is not considered in the truest sense of the word LIVING. That is living to work. That is what a slave does.

reply to post by jjf3rd77


I feel nobody NEEDS to work, but wants to work because they want to pay their bills, because they want to have a roof over their head, electricity, running water, etc.. Now, if you are sincerely unable to work, then there is not much that can be done for that.

But working also serves a greatee purpose: You are, in your own way, not only helping others through whatever work you do, but you are experiencing a kind of concrete satisfaction in working. This is something that cannot be obtained by refusing to work simply because of laziness.

There is also much morall wrong with not working by choice. You are taking money away from people who DO work, which hurts them and their family. This indirectly obtained karna, I feel, is a terrible one, because it can be avoided easily by making a simple decision to work.

I think some people say this because they feel that they don't have a choice. We are surrounded with so much 'technology' which is mostly crap. I think alot of people feel overwhelmed and weighed down but have a hard time expressing it.

We are free, we live in the greatest time because of our freedom, freedom to go to work, to a job we hate, so we can buy crap we don't need.

Just my opinion though. : P

reply to post by jjf3rd77


Wage slavery is a two phase operation.

In phase one, you are forced to rack up massive amounts of debt in order to get the necessities in life such as an education, a car or a house.

In phase two, the debt forces you to accept work, possibly in a field not of your choosing in order to pay off your debt. Because you have the debt and monthly bills to worry about, you are not free to simply leave your employer if conditions become to oppressive. You are forced to put up with more bull-crap than you would if you were not saddled with debt, taxes and monthly bills to pay for your necessities.

Working or money is not, in itself, wage slavery. Being forced to work a miserable job you hate because its the only option to support your family because of your mounting debt and utility bills turns it into wage slavery.

reply to post by jjf3rd77


The definition of a slave is: A person who is the legal property of another and is forced to obey them.
The definition "to slave" is: Work excessively hard

The metaphor is that you are owned by your boss, who in turn is owned by a "monetary system". You will work excessively "hard" and are paid to return the next day.

A slave would comply for his survival. We, today, comply for our survival and that of our family as well. The trade off is Money. It gives you the apparent freedom to chose to do what you want, the illusion of being independent, . but, face it, you are a slave to the money you are trading for your time at work, a slave to the system of monetary rewards.

So, in simple terms, the analogy of being slave to money is sadly accurate.

The amount of money, your wage, places you in a better position on the social scale, but to what extend. A well paid slave is still a slave.

reply to post by jjf3rd77



I know that if you take the time to watch this brilliant presentation that you will understand the "Why's" to your question.

Peace,

RT

They say minimum wage is wage slavery not wages in generally. Thats a whole 'nother argument though. Wage slavery does exist though in the united states many immigrants and poverty stricken people get trapped into it. My mother and step-father used to work for a sign carver that paid them under the table. He then forced them into a situation where they were only making 40$ a week enough to live off of but had to pay for everything including rent on a trailer, rent on a car that they own anyways and when they traveled they had to pay for the hotels they were staying at. There was a lot more going on too but its a crappy situation.

As for minimum wage being wage slavery, I wouldn't consider it that. Its all about how job markets work. Its going to be easier to find someone to work at you're store as a janitor for minimum wage then it is to find someone to work at say you're hospital has a doctor. If theres a very limited number of doctors I'm going to have to compete with other hospitable with wages and benefits to get them to work for me. However if I'm looking for a janitor to clean more store I'm going have offers come to me and lower the price because the market is flooded with them.

Now they're people that say money is slavery in general. Thats when we get into philosophy. In terms of debt I could see how it can be like being in slavery.

reply to post by jjf3rd77

Why is working for money considered wage slavery?

One word...

Taxes.

reply to post by jjf3rd77


I posted these yesterday on another thread, but perhaps this will explain it a little. I mean this in a positive sense only. Unfortunately I am handing you 5 hours of film to watch, but if you really want to understand the concept, I think this will do it.



Then we have the film maker, Peter Joseph being interviewed by Joe Rogan;



If you follow the link back to YouTube you will see that there is even a movement. It is a rather recent development which I just discovered yesterday.

Also it helps to have a clear grasp of history to understand this. I am not talking about the memorization of names, dates, and places, which passes for history lessons in our public school system, but rather the very motivation for putting together our public education system. We were vastly more literate before this bureaucratic money machine was hung around our neck, better read and much more independent than we are today. Indeed, the specialization of our education is an intentional, if not the most important, reason for saddling us with inferior education.

Why did Carnegie push so hard and pay so much for our education? He saw the benefit to loosing the independence of the American people and dumbing them down to be good dependent factory workers. At least he saw the benefit to him and his kind, not to us.

Do you understand the economic meltdown? The causes and effects? Or how our economic system works? I do now but I have had to do a lot of reading to understand it. Most people today do not, and do not feel qualified to do so. It is actually rather simple once you understand it, but before you do it seems very daunting. A nice and very intentional cover which has made this mess possible.

Everything depends on everything else ~ the Buddha.

reply to post by Mcupobob

Now they're people that say money is slavery in general. Thats when we get into philosophy. In terms of debt I could see how it can be like being in slavery.

If you believe that money being slavery is nothing but a philosophical argument, I suggest that you try to do without it for a while.

It is a fact that in our society, if we desire anything worth anything, we are slaves to the mighty dollar. like it or not. It is not a philosophical argument or a theory, it is a fact.

It's wage slavery because most of us (in America) are only making enough to survive, not enough to save, invest or get ahead. We're stuck in financial purgatory when we're not slipping lower than we'd like. Compare this to the idea of farming a small plot and raising a few animals (about six hours of work a day to provide for a family, and yes, I've done it) and you can see that the "old way" leaves you with more free time, better chances to get ahead (every thing you don't consume can be sold) and a sense of being self-made. Instead we choose the former and live in dependence.

reply to post by jjf3rd77


I forgot something. Isn't it odd that the term wage slave actually comes from at least as far back as the 30s? Watch "His Girl Friday", it is in there between the laughs.

So this is not a new concept. I think the other poster was right. I am pretty sure that the term probably started about the time of the Federal Income Tax - the unconstitutional Federal Income Tax - but that itself is another huge topic.

Originally posted by newcovenant
reply to post by jjf3rd77

 

Because wages aren't keeping up with the cost of living. If every spare moment is spent working just to make ends meet, just to eat and keep a roof over your head or your health, that is not considered in the truest sense of the word LIVING. That is living to work. That is what a slave does.

Could not be explained in better terms, in my opinion.

Wage slaves are also encouraged to breed, as this would enforce an "everything to lose" paradigm if one were to consider changing their life.

Here is an even deeper look into the aspect of being a "drone", I prefer the term drone over the word 'slave'. This portrayal of 'drone life' is comical, yet profound, and it's from a youtube video that is voice masked and thus too annoying to listen to, so I'll transcript it:

Drones are the people who work Forty hours a week at an office doing meaningless things they don't want to do while fostering the desire to get married and have babies.

They are all members of a specific cult called 'the breeders'. These people all live together on breeding grids known as suburban neighborhoods.

To join a breeding grid they have to go through a rite of passage called 'the mortgage'. The way the initiation works is they are testing on a variety of things all involving their ability to work and their ability to pay their bills on time.

If they are found to have a good credit score then they're allowed a house on the grid. In exchange they will allow a bank to enslave for upwards of 30 years. Upon finding a mate the drones make a nest in the breeding grid. The female nests and starts hatching drones. While the female is hatching she will take up full time residence on the grid while the male will work more hours at the cubicle.

While the male is gone the female feeds the baby drone until its old enough to begin the conditioning process called education. At this point the young drone is placed in a school where it is taught to take orders and stay still at its desk. Which is really just a simulation for the cubicle. When the drone graduates the whole process starts over again.

Those who do not join the breeding cult are treated with great suspicion and cast as outsiders. Also, anyone who disrupts the rhythm of the breeding grid is considered illegal. Which means that the drones have a right to put them in the dungeon. Where they can't disrupt the grid anymore.

Sometimes the drones will even kill people for disrupting the breeding grid. This is known as execution. To make things worse the drones believe it is okay to drop bombs on other breeding grids that are not like theirs. They call this war. The really fascinating thing about the drones is that they feel okay about war as long as it is happening where they can't see it.

Any more questions?

I suggest you grow fond of the term breeding grid, as you'll never be able to dislodge it from your brain whenever you look at the place you call home. It all makes sense now.

Originally posted by ManjushriPrajna
reply to post by jjf3rd77

 

I feel nobody NEEDS to work, but wants to work because they want to pay their bills, because they want to have a roof over their head, electricity, running water, etc.. Now, if you are sincerely unable to work, then there is not much that can be done for that.

But working also serves a greatee purpose: You are, in your own way, not only helping others through whatever work you do, but you are experiencing a kind of concrete satisfaction in working. This is something that cannot be obtained by refusing to work simply because of laziness.

There is also much morall wrong with not working by choice. You are taking money away from people who DO work, which hurts them and their family. This indirectly obtained karna, I feel, is a terrible one, because it can be avoided easily by making a simple decision to work.

Wish I knew what country YOU live in, because in my country, you cannot afford to NOT work.

Even if your home was PAID for, and you surprisingly have no bills to pay for, and you grow all of your own food, and live the simple life, you STILL HAVE THAT THING CALLED PROPERTY TAXES that you are forced to pay.

SO, therefore, you have NO CHOICE but to find a way to earn money. And the more people try to earn a living on their own, the more regulations and laws appear that PREVENT you from doing so.

In the U.S., a commoner MUST work. It would be silly to assume that it is a CHOICE by us to do the work of 6 employees at 60 hours a week on our jobs by choice. Thats flat out SILLY. Things are MUCH DIFFERENT than the golden days of past where you can do the job of ONE employee, and work decent hours for a decent wage and have a LIFE. LONG GONE are those days...

And If we are LUCKY enough to actually go on a vacation somewhere nice (besides sitting home just relaxing) once every several years, that is a welcome surprise.

SO, we certainly do not work and earn a living this way by choice, BELIEVE THAT.

U.S. Commoners = slaves. Thats why the WEALTHY folks wealth have gone up THRU THE ROOF in modern times and our lives and wages have gone down the toilet. We ARE modern day slaves.

Generational Welfare in all forms of "financial" assistance perhaps has created a new attitude.

I think many kids who's parent(s) are receiving "assistance" may be wondering why when a parent gets a job, the payments stop (the parents may be wondering too !).

They may be deathly afraid of having to work later in life.

They may see a job as "slavery" because the "money" is no longer "free of charge".

They may find bewilderment and amazement that they themselves would have to someday join the "slave" ranks.

They see the "slaves" as their supporters.

They do not know the real definition of "slave".

Ask any psychologist.

Not to mention that "money" is no longer backed by Gold, therefore has no actual value, other than numbers on a computer in a bank, and the paper it is printed on.

I like what I'm seeing in this thread. I'm hoping some of you might check out my "political philosophy" thread in (you guessed) the philosophy forum. Some of the stuff being laid out here would really serve to further discussion in that thread.

It isnt in every case. But at least when it comes to a certain level of work, one side says, work for minimum wage or live under a bridge. Attempts to uonize the workers, to see how much the company will pay to stay in buisness when it is set under pressure by strikes and the like are jepperdized. If unions do come around they are blamed for buisnesses going out of buisness, for not being able to provide a buisness model that works even if more than minium wage is being payed. Dont forget the real value of minimum wage detoriates over time due to inflation.

But if a buisness goes out of buisness, because the workers do the minimum indispensable and over time they do a worse and worse job, who is to blame? The workers doing a bad job, or the employer, for not providing a buisness model that allows employers to do sloppy work?

In short it is seen as slavery, because one side holds all the cards and the other side trying to even the playing field is seen as leftist communist etc. Funny how those who want everyone to works for the same minimum wage regardless wether they work on a fast food chain that bairley breaks even or on one that makes stellar profits are the capitalists and the ones who want more capital in their pockets are the leftist communists.