2008 Woodie Awards
Rich-poor gap broadens
Blue-collar citizens overworked, underpaid; college students seek better career options
Jon McEwen
Issue date: 2/22/07 Section: Opinion
- Page 1 of 1
Everyone who's anyone in the United States of America is underpaid. If that doesn't make sense from the get-go, I am saying the backbone of this country, laborers, teachers, firemen, janitors and cooks, all are underpaid.
As college students, we are all here for our own personal gains, but the majority of us seek to better our career options.
Younger people view college as a way out of the working class or a doorway to a rich lifestyle. Unfortunately, it just isn't so. A generalization can be made about today's youth: the majority relates success with money.
The fact of the matter is that unless you're a lawyer or doctor, rich is going to be the last word to describe your financial standing. That is a hard lesson learned for some in life.
If you take a look at the U.S., you'll see first a wonderful place in the western world; second, you'll see a very sad situation.
Here in the U.S., the gap between social classes continues to broaden. For every rich man, there are a hundred poor men.
Sadly for every rich person, it just means somewhere someone is getting the shaft.
Only a handful of us will be the rich, with the majority being lower middle class. Our country is downgrading toward poverty.
Day by day, it's becoming harder for average men to move into the upper class, and it will stay this way unless we become more conscious about things. As young college students, we all have the opportunity to start finding a solution to this problem.
There are two kinds of college students: those who choose to be overly concerned about their own personal gains and those who are willing to make some sacrifices for the greater good.
If we develop a backbone that runs through all of us, and not just the individual, we have a good chance for a better future.
Imagine what would happen if one day nobody showed up to work at Halliburton, Wal-Mart or McDonald's, and when the managers called to ask why nobody showed up, they were told, "Everyone who's anyone in the United States of America is underpaid."
As college students, we are all here for our own personal gains, but the majority of us seek to better our career options.
Younger people view college as a way out of the working class or a doorway to a rich lifestyle. Unfortunately, it just isn't so. A generalization can be made about today's youth: the majority relates success with money.
The fact of the matter is that unless you're a lawyer or doctor, rich is going to be the last word to describe your financial standing. That is a hard lesson learned for some in life.
If you take a look at the U.S., you'll see first a wonderful place in the western world; second, you'll see a very sad situation.
Here in the U.S., the gap between social classes continues to broaden. For every rich man, there are a hundred poor men.
Sadly for every rich person, it just means somewhere someone is getting the shaft.
Only a handful of us will be the rich, with the majority being lower middle class. Our country is downgrading toward poverty.
Day by day, it's becoming harder for average men to move into the upper class, and it will stay this way unless we become more conscious about things. As young college students, we all have the opportunity to start finding a solution to this problem.
There are two kinds of college students: those who choose to be overly concerned about their own personal gains and those who are willing to make some sacrifices for the greater good.
If we develop a backbone that runs through all of us, and not just the individual, we have a good chance for a better future.
Imagine what would happen if one day nobody showed up to work at Halliburton, Wal-Mart or McDonald's, and when the managers called to ask why nobody showed up, they were told, "Everyone who's anyone in the United States of America is underpaid."
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