It is now the fourteenth day of this blogging challenge. I missed yesterday’s posting due to fatigue, but I made a commitment to trying to write a post every day. As mentioned in previous posts, I will be using writing prompts to build the foundation of this habit. Today’s prompt regards life expectations vs the reality that I experience. Like many people growing up at the tail end of neoliberal policy, I had a vague idea of what success would entail as I grew older.
The expectation
The expectation was to finish education, procreate and then die. As a result, this is what we were conditioned to want out of life. Education is necessary for navigating this world. What was not said about education is that it never stops. We went with the assumption that we would all end up in college or university. Rarely mentioned was the vocational route or apprenticeship. I believe class prejudice is the reason why anti-intellectualism is prevalent in the realm of employment.
The various industries of labour are all in competition for potential bodies. The current shortage of potential workers is not only a matter of pay, but a matter of identity associated with the type of employment one does. All labour is tied to identity, many potential workers are more selective about what they are willing to do for pay.
Society has always denigrated physical labour regardless of the skill needed to complete a job. This is due to the history of slavery that is associated with labour. Human beings want things done, but are unable to pay people the cost of labour for completion. It is why there is almost no class solidarity.
Everyone is afraid of being seen as the lesser person. And as such, we have made a world where we now live in a precarious and uncertain world.
I am enslaved to a nightmare.
The reality
I have to find out what works for me to navigate this world. I have found learning to create helps me figure that out. I’m not really sure what else to add here because I’m getting bored.
Thank you for reading, if you liked this article please subscribe to Conditional Humanity.