The May 2021 American Perspectives Survey finds that Americans report having fewer close friendships than they once did, talking to their friends less often, and relying less on their friends for personal support.
I used to hate this growing up. We didn’t have much money and most of the time I couldn’t afford the bus to the nearby town, never mind food/drink/cinema ticket/etc. Now I’m glad that was my childhood; it’s part of what makes materialism feel such a natural way of seeing the world.
And as an adult I’m quite good with not wasting money because I couldn’t care about spending money on pointless commodities as a child. Like, idgaf about branded clothing, the latest gadgets, the top smartphone, a flash car. I learned to not care about these things long before I read Marx.
Still, it’s torture watching young people in my life struggle to make friends because they feel like they need to spend money to keep friends, but cannot afford it.
They already charge you to reproduce. It will cost you a good 30k to have a baby in the US. The caps will charge you to breathe if they can find a way.
You would still be charged, yes. You need to get a birth certificate and documents, which costs money. Also, most people hire someone experienced to reduce the risk, which also costs money. And, if there are any issues and you take an ambulance to the hospital, the ambulance costs money as well as the hospital.
How fucked is it that we need money to simply spend time with people we like? To socialize? It’s one of our core biological functions!
I used to hate this growing up. We didn’t have much money and most of the time I couldn’t afford the bus to the nearby town, never mind food/drink/cinema ticket/etc. Now I’m glad that was my childhood; it’s part of what makes materialism feel such a natural way of seeing the world.
And as an adult I’m quite good with not wasting money because I couldn’t care about spending money on pointless commodities as a child. Like, idgaf about branded clothing, the latest gadgets, the top smartphone, a flash car. I learned to not care about these things long before I read Marx.
Still, it’s torture watching young people in my life struggle to make friends because they feel like they need to spend money to keep friends, but cannot afford it.
They already charge you to reproduce. It will cost you a good 30k to have a baby in the US. The caps will charge you to breathe if they can find a way.
Would someone still be charged if they just had the baby at home. I know it’s risky, but do some people chance it?
You would still be charged, yes. You need to get a birth certificate and documents, which costs money. Also, most people hire someone experienced to reduce the risk, which also costs money. And, if there are any issues and you take an ambulance to the hospital, the ambulance costs money as well as the hospital.
Really do have to pay to play.
Don’t get me started on childbirth