A life costs money. Most people don’t have enough money to purchase a life, and this state of affairs has a lot to do with political decisions made for the benefit of the economic elite
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I am in my forties and, though not a frequent flyer by the requirements of my mileage plan, have been on my fair share of domestic and international flights, and have NEVER ONCE flown in anything other than economy. Although, I have to admit that at this point it’s kind of a badge of honor.
On second thought, I also have to admit that I don’t know how one gets ‘bumped’ as I have never looked into it.
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Like most writing about airline travel, this is misguided hyperbole. It’s a common thing for journalists to hop on a plane and make sweeping generalizations based on anecdotal evidence, what some would describe as (n=1).
So…let’s see. I work in an office where I supervise 8 people, and all of us travel heavily for work purposes. I happen to make barely over $100,000/yr, the rest of my team less. From my perspective, are very lucky in this world, but by no means are we the “1% club”
I know I have personally traveled in business class at least two dozen times, and my team over a dozen each. A few of these trips have been paid for by clients, but the rest come by way of frequent flyer program upgrades for those of use who spend our lives in tubes. As several have pointed out, it is actually VERY RARE that you will find someone in the 1% club flying in paid F. Those folks simply fly private jets. After all, if you have the money for 2 first class tickets (~ $50,000) why would you ever go commercial?
Business class is a different story, as some of those tickets can be had for as little as $3,500. Still though, I fly enough to know that those cabins are doing good to hit 35-45% revenue based passengers, most of whom are enjoying tickets/upgrades courtesy of business travel. And by the way, it is actually quite rare to find fortune 500 C-suite employees flying in those cabins, since many of those, again, fly private.
So on any given Delta flight from JFK to Heathrow you can expect the Business cabin to be filled with international lawyers and consultants, with a smattering of frequent fliers redeeming miles for sward travel. Hardly a scandalous story!
Because I happen to know my way around award engines, I was able to grab two first class seats on British Airways from the US to Italy last spring for only 125,000 miles each. This was simply amazing. They shuttle you to a special lounge in Heathrow that is essentially unmarked and you get your own personal shower cabana to use while waiting for your connecting flight. Surely the trip of a lifetime. And guess what? We had the entire cabin to ourselves. Apparently the 1% don’t prefer to travel in this expensive first class style…
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Pretty long legs here. And size 15 feet. Makes it hard to keep just in the aisle. Like I said, I’ve shown others and they were surprised how easy it was not to have to scrunch themselves. Its like the biggest secret in the world, or maybe I’m the smartest man in the world…no that isn’t it.
However, I am going to defer to your sedation idea. I fully back this plan and try to be as sedated for flights as I can be.Unfortunately, I found out from experience, a half dozen muscle relaxers will get you escorted off a plane as opposed to being what the stewards should consider the best passenger ever. It should be the rule, not the exception.
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very true, if you live in places where it costs a lot to live you earn more on average, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are living “higher off the horse” that is a good point. typically though after deductible expenses people living in more expensive areas are not saving more or accumulating more wealth except possible property equity. but even 200k gross income doesn’t get you anywhere close to the 200k taxable income bottom of the 1% have. by the time you take all your deductions, fill your tax sheltered investments, apply tax loopholes, you have to earn a heck of a lot more then 200k a year to have a 200k taxable income OR not be working and pulling from a much vaster accumulation of wealth which is more common. most people at that level have a taxable income that is just what they couldn’t shelter from what they pulled from a much larger accumulated wealth. their wealth is separate from their taxable yearly income figures. the gap is much much larger then the taxable income figures would lead some folks to believe.
I tried explaining that earlier, but some people just didn’t get it. This has been my experience as well.
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Yeah yeah, everyone’s advantage and wealth has totally been given to them by a rigged system that’s kept you out and no one’s earned their success and wah wah wah wah man it’s tiresome.
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Du kannst Dich zurückhalten von den Leiden der Welt, das ist Dir freigestellt und entspricht Deiner Natur, aber vielleicht ist gerade dieses Zurückhalten das einzige Leid, das Du vermeiden könntest.
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at least that is how you come across…and yeah it is tiresome but more then that it is unconscionable…
society needs more not less discussion about wealth inequality if things are ever going to improve. a heck of a lot more.
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Insider tip: Whenever you hear the inflight announcement “we’re still awaiting landing clearance from the flight control tower” it really just means that the captain is busy fellating a billionaire.
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150k in silicon valley will let you live in an 800sqft apt with 4 roommates
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Many (most) have done better by the sheer chance of whom they were born to. Privilege and merit are two different things.
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You know what’s tiresome? When money equals voice in how the House and Senate vote and corporations feel entitled to literally buy the government because it’s all about them and their unquenchable thirst for more money and power. The rest of the citizenry be damned and as invisible as possible in every aspect of life from herding people onto planes like animals to fighting health care, to equal opportunities for all. The 1% narrow, self-centered vision is REALLY tiresome.
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Samsa doesn’t want anything to change. And I find that tiresome.
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It’s hard to appreciate just how much an advantage being born into wealth is towards propelling a person into the upper echelons. To paraphrase Molly Ivins, most of the ultra-rich are “born on third base but think they hit a triple.”
I have a good friend I went to high school with who is, by all accounts, extremely smart, diligent, hard working and humble. Everyone in our group knew he was destined for great things. His family also happens to be very, very rich and of course he went to the best schools, got his MBA early, took over his daddy’s firm and is now CEO at the young age of 42.
Not to take anything away from his accomplishments and he would have most likely succeeded in spite of his wealthy background, but it is so much easier to reach the top when you’re born already half way up.
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Why are they afraid of admitting that? Because deep down they know what Molly Ivens said is true.
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He may refer too those earning more then 100 million a year or more as 1%'ers.
How do the 1%ers treat the flight attendants?
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Someday they’ll look back on it and laugh. /s
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