Adrianna TanAug 10, 2023
Every single ‘software engineer’ I know who has ever over-valued their own work over blue collar work has, without fail, turned out to be MAGAs or incels. They tend to be the people who have their self worth wrapped up in their compensation and status, and are quick to anger when transit workers or delivery drivers, who work long hours in ways that are taxing in every way, break their narrative for themselves
Show threadEarthshine --> movedAug 11, 2023
@skinnylatte NGL though "anger" is an appropriate reaction to realizing your own labor is undervalued. Some tech workers (myself included) make less than half of that. The problem is that the capitalists want to spin this narrative the narcs love about other people "unfairly" being paid *more* than they feel they're worth (by comparison to a narc, nobody is worth as much as themselves) while the reality is that all workers across all fields have had their wages depressed and been aggressively exploited for a long time, and they all should be getting paid more for the work they do and the value they bring to society. This is a huge win for UPS workers, but narcs will always see a win for someone else as a loss for themselves. It's a zero-sum game to them. The capitalist class has successfully weaponized this dissonance by convincing them the real problem here is the workers winning one battle, rather than them losing the rest.
Show threadAdrianna TanAug 11, 2023

@earthshine I guess I also had in mind the San Francisco tech bros who, as early as 2011/2012, reacted so strongly against the idea that a train driver could make six figures that they went on to do all kinds of bad politics after that. People who are compensated well but don’t think others should.

All workers should demand better compensation; putting down other workers doesn’t sit well with me. But I know what you mean. It goes to show the importance of organize labor, too.

Show threadEarthshine --> movedAug 11, 2023

@skinnylatte yeah the superiority complex is a really infuriating feature, especially since it is so often espoused by people whom exist outside of the working class where all the labor is performed. Those "tech bros" aren't the engineers and the programmers, but the venture capitalists and landed gentry whom seized the opportunity to exploit the labor of others to their own ends.

Often when discussing things like the value of labor and fair pay, workers rights etc... those workers whom are privileged enough not to struggle get super defensive. They've been conditioned to believe that being better off financially makes them the target of the struggling workers' anger. And sometimes it does--because of the classist attitudes they display in their jealousy.

But they are wrong to believe that they are not of the working class. Some of them may be paid disproportionately more for their labor, sometimes on merit or talent, or circumstance, or nepotism, or blind fucking luck... but at the end of the day it is their labor that they sell for their paycheck. They do work and contribute to society in whatever way that they do. They are not the problem. They may think they are. They may side with *the problem* , but in doing so they are just class traitors.

The owner class is exploiting them both.

Show threadAdrianna Tan
@earthshine Oh, there are plenty of programmers here who aren’t VCs or the owner class who believe this. But it’s also because they’ve been sold a myth: that they are the owner class
Aug 11, 2023 at 12:51amWeb