Money dehumanises people
I saw a 'friend' litter on the road once, and when I asked him why he didn't throw his trash away in a trash can close to us, he laughed and said, "We need them for the street cleaners. I'm just making sure they have a job".
I thought he was kidding, but he wasn't. Because when I picked up after him to dispose of his trash properly, he laughed again. But this time at me.
It's been years, and the interaction has stayed with me. Now, he has a lovely wife, has a few kids, and works at one of the Big 4 accounting firms in Malaysia. Last time we talked, he mocked feminism even though he admitted he didn't know what it is. (He also admitted he doesn't care).
He says the wife 'humanises' him, but I pity her for putting up with his nonsense. I wonder if she'd still stay with him if he was broke, because 'I make decent money so I can be smug' is pretty much his whole personality.
It pisses me off that this man is gonna raise his kids to be selfish, entitled pricks just like him.
Far too many people think that not going to college and/or being poor = social failure, as if one is only deserving of being treated with respect when they have the papers for it. This is what unchecked privillege does — it dehumanises people who don't have such privileges.
"Money is the root of all evil" exists for a reason.
Imo, the richer you are, the more you have to prove that you're not an asshole.
As income disparity worsens each year on a global scale, shameless displays of wealth is neither impressive nor warranted. Instead, it outs you as a red flag: a materialistic and apathetic person who lacks compassion.
May they never have their favorite drinks available, may they never find their devices and remote controls, may they always lose their passwords and keys, may they always trip over their own shoes, and may they never get helped up if they fall down.