Twisted: Leftists HIDE BEHIND Their Wealth and Privilege
If I get rich, you can bet your sweet buttocks I won’t apologize for it.
Because I would have come by my wealth honestly. Hard work, paying my dues. Hell, I feel like I should have been rich a decade ago.
Ever watched Million Dollar Listing New York. A million dollars will get you a one-bedroom apartment in some rinky-dink area of New York City. Don’t even think about being in Manhattan with that little coin.
And if you do find a place in Brooklyn or equivalent, your view will be the apartment of other schleps like you out there trying to make a living. You won’t be the big mack on that side of town, but just one of the many hoping to get some appreciation in a few years so you can join the real middle class.
The reason why $1 million is no big deal in New York City is that’s just not much money in that distorted area of the country. And then there is the cost of keeping up appearances.
As the New York Post reported,
In her research for “Uneasy Street: The Anxieties of Affluence” (Princeton University Press, out Sept. 5), Rachel Sherman interviewed 50 New York-area parents of young children, whose household incomes ranged from $250,000 to $10 million and with assets totaling up to $50 million. These locals live pampered lives — with multiple high-end properties, teams of household employees and frequent, lavish vacations — but still, they do impressive mental gymnastics to avoid identifying themselves as truly rich.
For instance: Helen, a stay-at-home mom with an annual family income of $2 million, describes herself as “in the middle, in the sense that there are so many people with so much money. They have private planes. They have drivers. They have all these things.” This kind of creative (and self-serving) logic is prevalent among Sherman’s subjects as a way to reconcile their outrageous spending habits with the need to see themselves as normal and down-to-earth.
And now these people don’t want others to know of their wealth.
Because that “wealth” is the new Leftist norm. And that norm is the “cover” for knowing they are privileged, but not wanting to admit it.
A Midwesterner with $2 million is rich. He probably owns a 5,000 square foot home on a couple of acres. The cost of the home was less than $500,000. He maintains a comfortable mortgage, and his total monthly debt might be $7 grand. That’s barely the rent on a nice 2-bedroom in Manhattan.
How distorted Leftists are and in so many ways. Mostly, they have no understanding of the “common man’s” issues. They are distorted by virtue of their mere existence.
Smart Asset reports,
It’s no secret that living in New York City is darn expensive. Before the average NYC resident’s paycheck even reaches the bank, she’s shelling out some of the highest income taxes in the country, with total rates ranging from 7% to 12%. After that, she’s facing some of the least affordable housing in the country, along with prices for every-day products that are up to twice the national averages.
Taking all expenses into account, the cost of living in New York City is at least 68.8% higher than the national average. If you live in the city center, however, it’s even worse. The cost of living in Manhattan is more than double the national average.
So when your cost of living is already double the national average, how can you possibly relate to Small Town, America’s sensibilities.
In rural America, people live comfortably for less than $2,000 per month…on acreage.
According to The Nest,
The average price of a property listed for sale in New York City in June 2012 was $2,05 million, according to real estate website Trulia.com. In contrast, the typical price for a property in Sheridan, Kansas, was $47,000.
Anybody think the sensibilities of a person spending an average of $2 million on a home has a different set of values from somebody spending $48,000? That’s not a condemnation, but a fact. Further, how many people do you think can even consider a $2 million home? That’s a small percentage.
This brings me to my next point. City slickers have a twisted value system born of needing more to simply survive.
For example, try to get some guy who runs a far to pay $5 regularly for a cup of coffee and you begin to get an idea.
To afford a $2 million home and budget $5 a day for coffee means you are devoid of the Average Joe’s reality. Urbanites don’t see their incomes as a lot of money, nor the things they spend their money on as “privilege”. So what you spend $20,000 a year to send a child to Montessori? That’s what people do, isn’t it?! Here’s an unfathomable fact that most Americans likely haven’t considered. In major cities, it can cost more to park one’s car than people earn in a year.
Brick Underground reported on these costs:
Garages: The biggest hurdle to owning a car in New York City versus other areas is the prohibitively high cost of parking. If you’re looking to buy an apartment that comes with its own spot, in Manhattan, you can expect that to add anywhere from $60,000 to $150,000 to the final price tag (maybe more), as we’ve written previously. Renting a spot in most buildings with garages can run anywhere between $100 and $1,000 depending on the neighborhood, and if you opt for a private garage, NYC Parking authority reports that the average cost of monthly parking in the city clocks in at around $430. (Though Manhattan residents who park in the borough can qualify for an 18.375 percent parking tax exemption.) Anyway you slice it, you’ll be paying as much as most people in other cities pay in rent for the privilege of keeping your car indoors.
It’s no wonder these people feel guilty about their wealth. When it costs more to park your car than the value of most people’s cars, you know you have a problem. Imagine if it cost $300 to dry-clean your suits and you get the point.
