Tainted Wisdom

Slavery in America

Egypt had slaves. They built the pyramids under the lash until Moses. Early America had slaves. They picked cotton under the lash until Abraham Lincoln. Today America still has slaves. We are the slaves, white, red, yellow, black, and brown alike.

You likely disagree that we are slaves, but bear with me. Let's first talk about what slaves do and what they get for it. The slaves in Egypt built the pyramids and in return for their labor they received whippings and just enough food to survive. In short, they received a lot less than the value of their labor. The Pharaoh enjoyed the real fruits. In Early America, the cotton-picking slaves benefited no more from their labor. They too received lashings, just enough to eat, and lived in shacks. The plantation owner reaped the reward of his slaves' labor. That's why he had the big house. He made a lot of money selling the cotton and keeping it all. So, the premise is this: a slave gets back a heck of a lot less than he earns, and he is forced to work for another person that lives the good life off the majority of his labor.

So, are you a slave? Are you forced to work to subsist? Do you receive little benefit from your labor? Do you answer, "yes," to a few or all of the following questions?

Do you rent rather than own your house or apartment?

How much of your mortgage payment is interest?

How long could you go without working before you went hungry?

How much do you pay in taxes?

Are your cars paid off?

Do you save any money?

How much debt is on your credit card?

If you had invested all the tax, interest, and rent you've ever paid in your life, would you be substantially better off today?

We can rationalize away the idea we are slaves, but we can't deny the fact that the bulk of the wealth we create ends up in someone else's pocket. I believe the Slavemaster is still alive and well in Modern America.