After reviewing this - I've decided that it was almost completely irrelevant to anything I said, but I will respond anyway.
The owner of the company - let's talk about him for a bit. I don't know what company you work for, but most workers in this country work for smallish businesses that are privately owned so let's just go with that scenario for the sake of argument.
First of all, I actually don't work, so what I was referring to is the 'slight small potential' that I will find a job. However, I'm not really complaining about it because I left my last job (seeing how they broke labor laws), because I felt like I still had some human dignity left.
This guy, or woman, or small group of owners, carries most of the risk. He has to pay you your earned wages whether the company is making a profit or not. Not only that, he carries a benefits package that costs him a pretty penny as well. He also pays more taxes in more various forms than you are probably aware of.
Of course he carries the most risk... the workers produce something and are guaranteed the pay to do so... the owner just invests the production and should not be entitled to any money because he himself does not actually produce anything.. and he should pay more taxes, rightly so, because the attempt to is make large amounts of wealth for not actually producing anything at all.
Thanks for the 'business 101' lesson.
I used to own a real estate company with about 25 employees. Did I make more money than them? For the most part yes - though I believe that a couple of the top producers actually cleared more money than I did.
Well, clearly they should have seeing they were doing all the 'production'.
Anyway - I paid the lease on the building (NOT CHEAP!), I paid for the computer systems (also not cheap!), the MLS dues, the taxes and charges on various things, the secretarial help (including their benefits package), the various services to the facility, etc, the office supplies, etc., etc.
And you still made more than all your employees? Are you complaining? I don't understand.
I enjoyed being my own boss for awhile - till I figured out that it had a very heavy pricetag when it came to hours at work and responsibility. And in addition to expense and work - I carried the liability of the company. If one of my agents or employees made a mistake or did something unethical - the responsibility fell directly on me - PERSONALLY.
WORK AND RESPONSIBILITY! You mean, you actually had to do something to be making more than the rest of your employees? (Except the 'top' producers, of course)
I could fire them - but then I had to clean up the mess while they went on down the road and worked somewhere else.
Did you not hire your own staff?
Now - sometimes I didn't come in to the office till 11 am. Sometimes I took off for several days in a row (though with technology, one is never really "off"). I think my employees might have told you, "Must be nice to be her - she just comes and goes as she pleases." Which was true - but I had earned that right.
How did you 'earn that right', while others didn't do anything to 'earn' such right?
They also didn't see the times that I was up at the office till 1 am working on something, or writing a check to the tech guy for $6000 for services.
You set your own schedule.. and you mean that $6000 dollars wasn't a profit? Damn. You have to give it to the guy that kept your technology in check.
Everyone pays property taxes, even the guy you think is exploiting you. My property taxes are $4500 a year. Good thing they're a federal tax write-off. For now, anyway.
Of course they do... if you didn't pay property taxes, no one would be protecting your 'right to property', regardless if it hurts the community or not.
It's not just about what SOCIETY produces. Since when do you have the inherent right to something that someone else produces?
Since people gained the inherent right to something I produced?
So five percent of the nation lives in extreme luxury and 95 percent of us work full time for a living? So what - screw them.
Yes, let's screw them real hard Kathryn.
I don't mind working and earning my own way. I couldn't care less how much money Paris Hilton inherits. She doesn't seem too happy to me anyway. I'd MUCH rather be me than her.
Which is a shame, because her fortune could feed a few thousand families, who, would be extremely happy to have said money.
What's wrong with working 40 or 50 hours a week and then working around your own place or on self improvement for a few more hours a week? Is that TOO HARD? I personally find it rewarding.
Others don't find it so rewarding... granted, it's also unnecessary. Now only would the '30-hour work week' leave more 'play time' for you, but it would free up work for people who want to work but cannot find it.
I didn't say you had to work six days a week for someone ELSE. Work also includes work around your own property and for self improvement. A five day work week (working at a company) is the norm for the vast majority of Americans who work.
Yo.. I don't have my own house, or my own property, in fact, the money I've made over my entire life has not even been able to properly keep up with car repairs. All the work I do is, in fact, for 'someone ELSE'.