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I wondered today, as the ads for yet another "killer" TV show were running, "Why are we so obsessed with killers? Serial killers, Psychopaths, Law & Order, Mom Killers, Detectives that catch killers, Detectives that identify killers, but don't always bring them to justice? Why?!"
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And it hit me. upward mobility..
"What the hell?", say you. "Bear with me," say I. (BEAR with me. -> get it?)
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Let us assume (you know - because it is true), that breaking into the upper upper class is almost impossible these days. The average income of the top 10% of Americans is (excluding the top 1%) is $167,000 per year. (for the 99% to 99.9%, the average income is $717,000 per year).
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BUT, enjoying some of the perks of that group is not so impossible. You can save up and order the Vodka with gold flecks in it. You can buy a big ass stupid car. There are a lot of things you can do for a short period of time.
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But what does the top of the top do that you can't. Commit crimes at will and get away with it. Wall Street Bad Guys (see Ma, no cursing) stole BILLIONS of dollars, forced people out of their homes, left people to die. And not one of these .. people... went to jail. None. They got a bailed out by us, then a bonus.
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They, quite literally, got away with (non-first degree) murder. They forced people out of their houses and into sketchy shelters or on the street - where many subsequently died. Homelessness during the 2008 "market correction" surged, as did suicides, poverty and massive massive unemployment. People lost their homes, therefore their jobs, therefore their health insurance. I won't go on because my head will explode. These Robber-Barons are quite literally above and outside the law.
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So nearly everyone who is older than 25 has no chance of breaking into Wall Street and getting away with figurative murder. But that's the dream. So literal murder is a fantasy escape. We can be as psychopathic as Wall Street robber-barons. Maybe we CAN get away with actual murder. Become untouchable and famous.
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