Going Through the Eye of the Needle

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   gmwilliamsposted 4 years ago

   
   The post was inspired by Tessa Schlesinger.  She is a great, analytical thinker. She has made some profound statements regarding the state of the post-modern world.  Beginning in the 1970s, there was a widening class divide w/ education & jobs becoming more specialized.  In the 1980s, the class divide became more pronounced.  Now in the 21st century, those with specialized education & skills are the ones who will thrive while those w/o skills will devolve into a permanent underclass. The idea of socioeconomic mobility is becoming a thing of the past.  The only children who have a chance of succeeding will be those of the upper middle & upper classes while those in the lower classes i.e. the lower, working, & lower middle class won't succeed- in fact, they will most likely be poor, even impoverished because of roadblocks which will prevent them from success.  One can say that children from the lower classes will be locked out of opportunities in 21st century America.  Your thoughts?

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      The0NatureBoyposted 4 years agoin reply to this

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         The0NatureBoyposted 4 years agoin reply to this

         To enter through the Eye of the Needle as revealed by the Christ in a metaphor referencing to a walk through gate in Jerusalem's wall. The camels of that area are much taller and wider than human and the gate was just a little higher and wider than the average person of that time. So, for Camels to go through it they had to unload it, it crawled through it and it was then reloaded on the other side.
         
         According to Revelation 5:12's Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing the Christ we Seek may/will have had material wealth before giving it up and living without the comforts of the world before manifesting with an OBE (Out'a Body Experience) to receive what the Bible verse's reward.
         
         That interprets that man with much material baggage has to relinquish the baggage and humble themselves, like usually done when one prays, to get into heaven where they will see they never needed all of that stuff in the first place. Therefore that may well be the something to happen to the coming messiah.
         
         Regarding your post: To every rule there is an exception to the rule including there is an exception to the rule therefore, as I see it, in the U S of America children from the lower classes will be locked out of opportunities in 21st century America and there will continue to be a decline out of the upper classes until the messiah replaces Trump.

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      MizBejabbersposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      I think there is a possibility you are right. However, there is always an exception to every family, rich or poor, and there is a loophole for the poor. I worked as a legal editor for 30 years editing bill drafts and laws for publication. Our agency noticed a trend in state laws several years ago to do away with trade schools by converting them into junior colleges.
      
      My boss and I had several discussions about how this was going to curb the learning of trades by HS graduates who were not college material. We discussed how it didn't take learning Shakespeare or Freud to learn the service industry like air conditioning or plumbing. Looking back, some of these trade school graduates started lucrative service businesses of their own and pulled themselves out of the low-income bracket.
      
      Sure enough, 20 years later, our state institutions have realized the error of their ways and are trying now to work trade school divisions back into their junior colleges. Especially note the culinary schools.
      
      A downside is that the price of tuition has gone up to the point that even university graduates and postgraduates carry so much burden in the form of student loans that they are middle age or beyond before they realize the benefits of their educations. For example, a my cousin told me that his son, a pharmacist, is 41 years old and is still trying to pay off $300,000 in student loans. My cousin, is a retired college professor and his wife is a nurse, still working. They are comfortable, but not wealthy. It is a shame to see what is happening to their educated children.
      
      Our society appears to be rapidly moving toward a civilization in which everyone except the super wealthy lives from payday to payday. You asked for our thoughts on "children from the lower classes will be locked out of opportunities in 21st Century America". I think it could happen, but I also think the tradesmen may be better off than the educated from the middle class. Why, because without the trade schools, we seem to be going back to apprenticing the trades out of necessity. These workers, that is, the ones who want to work, will be entering the markets without the burden of paying off extreme student loans. And if you think they aren't making any money, have you had your AC repaired lately?
      
      I've also noticed a high percentage of young black women from lower socio-economic circumstances are becoming nurses, CNAs, etc., and they make excellent ones. This is a field that offers a lot of scholarships to talented people.
      
      Of course, we are always going to have a certain segment of the population use the economy as an excuse to not try to better themselves.

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         The0NatureBoyposted 4 years agoin reply to this

         When I was in junior high school I studied wood work with mechanical drawing and metal shop, in high school I clung to metal working that included soldering and the two types of welding. The high school also had auto mechanics for boys and beautician, home economics and culinary schools for girls. I was supposed to have graduated in '62 but was a year and half late in getting my diploma.
         
         I believe the reason for removing working jobs from school curriculums was instigated by Corporations' thinking if they had to train workers they could pay them a lower salary which increased profits for the corporations. I believe it because of the "trade deals" we have today where almost no manufacturing jobs are in this country, the deals traded manufacture jobs for our farm goods because we have plenty land and now we see clearly, because of Trump, just how crippling it was for this nation. China has a city that is almost completely AI and expect to make all of its transportation AI controlled although the internet was developed here.

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            hard sunposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            Our local public schools still have wood shop class, auto mechanics, carpentry, culinary arts etc. They never went away. In fact, these programs have grown over the last decade, at least where I live in Midwest America.
            
            And, the middle class and lower income kids who have the ability and put up the effort are able to graduate college with no and or very little student loans. I've personally witnessed this also. 21st century scholarships are relatively easy to get for lower-income kids, Presidential Scholar is harder to get but maybe necessarily so, etc. etc. We must continue expanding these programs or these opportunities will disappear.  These programs were much fewer and further between a few decades ago..thus we have people who struggled through college twenty years ago who are unaware of the help kids have access to these days.
            
            For kids who try, and have parents, education is just not as bad as some seem to think. We just have to remain vigilant in demanding government scholarships and rewarding companies that offer private scholarships.

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               MizBejabbersposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               You have some good points, too. I think the increase in the trade school courses offered in HS came because the trade schools for high school graduates were abolished and the need became urgent.
               
               I think a lot of the reasons for the tremendous student loans is because most of these students don't want to work during their college years, or else they've chosen big-name universities that are extremely expensive. But then those who go on for postgraduate degrees do rack up a lot of bills, especially since some of the licensed careers (at least in my state) require MAs and doctorates, CPAs, pharmacy and physical therapy, for instance. You do reap what you sow. My grandchildren are working college students, so neither has graduated in four years. When I went back to graduate from the university and get a post-graduate degree, I worked full time and carried 9 to 12 credit hrs. a semester.
               
               I agree that government scholarships are great, but I don't go along with free college for all, including the very wealthy kids. I think if we provide free college for all, some students will become oblivious to it, like their attitudes have become toward high school.

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                  hard sunposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                  There are certainly problems with a system that saddles so many with debt. As you stated, it's often harder to get scholarships for grad work. I did mine on assistantship, but still had to get some loans to support a family. Plus, when I first started school decades ago, there wasn't as much help for lower-income students that didn't quite get up to academic scholar levels in high-school.
                  
                  I agree 100% about free for all college. Kids need to earn it and show they can do it. A system that allows anyone into a four year school, tuition free, seems wasteful. The governments then get return with innovation and tax dollars.
                  
                  I think we all know nations cannot keep up in the future economy without a strong education system that rewards those who can truly do the work. America can get by on nepotism only so long. We must get the right people, with the right education, in the right position, or we will not be great much longer.
                  
                  Thankfully, there are some American youngsters who understand this. I don't know if they are enough, or if our government will continue and expand on the programs needed for these youngsters to get the education they need and deserve.

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               The0NatureBoyposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               Maybe I'm in error, Hard Sun, or it's only in heavily "mixed" populated cities that they were removed. When I think back, when I got to Fort Worth in 1953 there were no African-American schools with trades in them. It was only after A-Ms surrounded a European-American school did we get one and there was one in Dallas, if I remember correctly. After the '60's integration that one closed and if A-Ms wanted to go to one they had to attend one that had been only for U-As. I will have to check on today's difference, I've beeb too long removed school-days and observing any local schooling to be certain.
               
               Thanks for setting me straight.

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                  hard sunposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                  The city where I live is slightly above average African American, with the public school system being a couple percentage points higher than that. I have children so am very aware of this area but not much outside of it.
                  
                  I know that, not being wealthy, my children get more opportunity in city/public schools than they would in private or the more prestigious public schools filled with the more well to do.
                  
                  As our nation is not headed in the right direction, in general, I like to point out areas where we may not be doing as poorly as some believe. Americans have a big struggle ahead of us.

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                     Castlepalomaposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                     The more they squeeze me. The more I slip through their fingers.

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      hard sunposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      I don't entirely disagree. However, with good parenting, and the right help (scholarships, etc) lower-income kids can  still learn the necessary skills moving forward in a changing economy. I've personally witnessed this happen.
      
      Of course, success is not all about money. Or even mostly about money IMO.

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         Sharlee01posted 4 years agoin reply to this

         Well said

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   Castlepalomaposted 4 years ago

   Don't worry GM. Trump promises to build a superhighway for the wealthy to get to heaven.

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      MizBejabbersposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      

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   gmwilliamsposted 4 years ago

   In the 21st century, lower income i.e. lower, working, & lower middle class children have less chance to be educationally & socioeconomically successful because they don't have the tools to become educationally & socioeconomically successful like their upper middle & upper class counterparts who have such opportunities en masse.  Even solidly middle class children have a difficult time becoming educationally & socioeconomically successful.  In the 21st century, the only children who will become highly educated & successful will be solidly middle, upper middle & upper class children.  Lower, working, & lower middle class children have a slim to no chance of being educationally & socioeconomically successful in the 21st century.  They will be the new slave class.

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      The0NatureBoyposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      My namesake son, Elijah III, had an Academic,  Basketball, and Football Scholarship, took the Academic, "walked on" the football team and played pro for 10 years to died a millionaire in 2010. That is a rarity. Many for African-Americans from the lower middle class and the reason is because they don't have encouragement from their families. He was born in August 1970 and his mother and I separated in '72 before my '73 New Conception and '76 New Birth that began my nomad life.
      
      I also won a football scholarship in the 11th grade and walked away from it, After the seventh grade where I was taught positive and neg alive numbers and after discovering negative and positive numbers of the equal values added together equals zero and he replied to my "zero is the only whole number" with Zero is not a number but a placement digit I no longer wanted to finish even high school but did.
      
      The source of all existence has designed it that way, however, via reincarnation every life-force will incarnate in every perceivable position, sexual orientation, ethnic and condition known to man so the life-force will have that imbedded in their spiritual consciousness to be brought to their remembrance (John 14:26) once they are "Born Again" for entering everlasting life.

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   gmwilliamsposted 4 years ago

   Since the 1970s, the people who succeeded educationally & socioeconomically came from the minimum solidly middle class homes.  It was the people who came from upper middle & upper class background who became successful.   Poor, working, & lower middle class people seldom progressed, if ever, at this period progressed beyond their class of origin.   People who obtained heights of success oftentimes come from the middle to upper socioeconomic echelons.  In the 21st century, poorer children WON'T succeed.  In fact, they will become a permanent underclass.

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   Castlepalomaposted 4 years ago

   Lets bring the high class down to middle high, easier. Then most of the poverty issues will be solved. Why should they have most of money and less of happi ness, money has least to do with happiness

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