“Everybody can....” well.... no. No they can’t. It is statistically possible for everyone to do- but not everything which is statistically possible will happen. A news caster and an A list actor. So- anyone in the world who wants to be an A lost actor could do it, and anyone who has ever tried and failed simply didn’t want it bad enough or wasn’t willing to do what it takes? It doesn’t work that way. Not everyone can “win” in life. It is possible- but so is it possible that gravity would decide to just stop working one day, or that people would all just decide to not fight anymore tomorrow. Possible? Yes. Anything is. Likely, probable, achievable by all? No. Pick anything- Doctor, Lawyer, Sanitation worker. Not everyone can hit the jackpot.
When you look at the statistical odds- a Black man from Tennessee in the time Freeman lived, becoming a wealthy and respected? How many others managed to do that even if we leave out being famous? We have the statistics. We know that the majority of Americans of ALL races and the majority of the world population don’t manage to “pull themselves up by the bootstraps.” We know that even those that do “pull themselves up” often fall or are knocked back down. I mean hell- why do you think movies about exactly that- an underdog pulling themselves up or succeeding- are such a popular genre? They don’t generally make big movies based on the routine. The heartwarming tale of beating the odds is next to fictions like wizard schools and giant robot wars and time traveling love stories and super spies jumping from deadly heights to be shot 7 times and get the bad guy. Anyone can win the lottery too-
but if you made your fortune off a gamble against astronomical odds you can’t tell people “it’s your fault you aren’t rich. I did it- what’s your excuse?”
At the end of the day the world only has so much money to go around, and so many jobs that pay good money. So long as people want to always have more- there will be someone who has to make that cheap stuff. If everyone were rich no one would be rich. It’s called inflation and market saturation. It’s an impossibility of our current economic system for everyone who tries- no matter how hard- to succeed. It’s disrespectful to those who did their honest best and didn’t make it- people who bling luck went the wrong way on, and to anyone who is fighting their own struggle to tell people that if they really want to there is no reason they can’t succeed. That is true of a single individual in a vacuum- but not a society.
People with this logic are also the same people who usually speak of “participation” trophies. It’s contradictory. Life is a contest. There is only so much and if you want it and someone else wants it- you are competing. One person will get the job and there are only so many. One person will get that house. You’re trying to get what you want while everyone else wants many of the same things and there are not enough for everyone. There will be those who “lose.” Who do not get what they wanted or needed so that you could. If an Olympic athlete loses because their tendon snapped- is it their fault? How many 80 year old gold medal sprinters have there been in history? 60 year old NFL running backs? It can happen- but is it likely? It’s an ignorant statement that shows a distorted view of reality to say that everyone can succeed. Anyone can succeed- not everyone.
I agree. Now, I don't mean any offense against him, but Morgan Freeman is famous mainly for his voice. He's famous because of something that was given to him in the "genetic lottery". Meanwhile you can have a person who works ten times as hard who didn't make it because he/she didn't have the same kind of genetic luck. I'm not discounting the hard work he did to get where he is, but I'm sure his voice played a part in his fame as well.
But speaking about black people specifically, there still is a huge racial saturation in most US cities due to the racist history, and the parts which are populated mostly by minorities are heavily underserved, like the education isn't as good as white (rich) areas etc, and in some cases there are safety hazards like lead paint on the walls which is proven to impair people's cognitive function if they're exposed to it for longer amounts of time. So yes statistically it's still more difficult to become successful as a person of color in the US.
But yeah anyway your point about the "everyone can succeed" mantra being bs is very true as well, that's not how economics works, that's not how the world works.
Also @guest long comments doesn't equal being angry. I write long comments too but I'm usually calm. I just feel like I need to explain every point to avoid misunderstanding but I, too, often get the "long comment = you're just ranting" response.
Thanks @ewqua. Some people don’t seem to understand that especially when talking about something complex and nuanced, it is usually prudent to be as clear as possible and give as much information to support and inform the thought process a conclusion was made on as possible. I agree with you 100% on your other points as well. History shaped the present, and that history holds oppression and subjugation. Many people are simply born into circumstances beyond their control. The fact a person may not have even been alive when racism was more open and severe or didn’t participate actively in that history doesn’t mean that they don’t reap the benefits or consequences. It’s all too common to hear people say that those impacted negatively should work to fix their circumstances. While we should all try and improve- if neither party is responsible for history but one party benefits from it and another suffers from it..
... well, I don’t think it takes a rocket scientist to figure out. If your father steals my fathers car and your father then passes that car down to you- while my father loses his job and my family becomes poor and I have no car to be given- is it right for you to turn around and tell me that you had no involvement in the theft? You are innocent and didn’t ask for my stolen car. You didn’t steal it. But can you then with a straight face say to me: “work harder and get your own car.” If we imagine ourselves in this situation and how we would feel, I think that we would all agree that we would feel that person was being a jerk, and that ot was not right.
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· 5 years ago
Lemon is kind of a piece of shit. I have to sit through him bringing in cherry picked guests that he knows either aren't knowledgeable on the topic or who agree with him 100% every night because my work only plays CNN on the TVs during lunch.
Here's Morgan Freeman telling black youths that if he can make it, they can too. Then in comes Lemon with "No you can't." Fuck that guy.
For people that don't know, Morgan Freeman worked his ass off to get where he is. The guys talked about taking the bus hours a day for work and working 10+ hours a day. He litterally came from nothing and had significantly less than the average American. He didnt get "a lucky break" either he did alot small stuff to make it. His argument is that sure it harder for some people to do things, but its possible if you work your ass off.
I have no doubt he worked hard. Hundreds or thousands more people a year tour or make a trip to Hollywood to be discovered. Many work multiple jobs, take classes, do networking events, and yet never make it in entertainment (or whatever their profession.) people sacrifice everything they have and pour all they can into dreams that don’t come true. And some people are discovered at a mall or do one audition and land a break out role. I have no doubt Morgan Freeman worked damn hard. He also would have faced resistance in his time because of his race. So then- does that mean that every black man who worked hard and didn’t make it just didn’t work hard enough?
Does every single person who works their hardest make it after all? And if he wasn’t born with that voice and a talent for acting- would he have been successful in the industry? That argument sells short every single person who has ever worked their butt off to get something and not made it, and it fails to factor in that he DID happen to be born with a certain voice and charisma. Some people can take singing lessons or dancing or acting lessons their whole life and not ever be considered good or become professional. So it isn’t so simple as “work hard and you too can make it...” Morgan Freeman isn’t a grocery clerk or even a lawyer. He’s an actor. That’s like an NFL Star saying that if you practices as much as them you’d be good. If that’s true and with billions up for grabs why didn’t more NBA players just “try harder” to be as good as Jordan etc?
Because at the end of the day what your maximum capabilities are, your talents, your gifts, those are different for everyone. As are the little circumstances and breaks that allow you to get ahead. Those doors aren’t open for everyone. Right place, right time, right preparation, right personality. If hard work was an instant means of success more than half the blue collar workers and below middle class families in America would be wealthy. Hard work is usually a necessary component of overcoming obstacles to success and honing a trade or skill set. It can make up for advantages you lack. But you also must be trained or able to recognize opportunity and seek it out. You must posses knowledge and skills to get ahead. Most companies have tons of skilled workers but one CEO- and something put them there that wasn’t just hard work.
If all it took was hard work we wouldn’t have mega celebrities. People want to see Keanu Reeves, not someone like him and often times not even someone who is an objectively better actor. They don’t cast block busters on pure talent or drive. Tons of indies and “fresh casts” have shown actors who will put in the same work and give amazing performances with less perks and less money- a harder work day for less. Hard work does not now or has it ever equaled success. It is a single component that generally improves ones odds.
At the end of the day the world only has so much money to go around, and so many jobs that pay good money. So long as people want to always have more- there will be someone who has to make that cheap stuff. If everyone were rich no one would be rich. It’s called inflation and market saturation. It’s an impossibility of our current economic system for everyone who tries- no matter how hard- to succeed. It’s disrespectful to those who did their honest best and didn’t make it- people who bling luck went the wrong way on, and to anyone who is fighting their own struggle to tell people that if they really want to there is no reason they can’t succeed. That is true of a single individual in a vacuum- but not a society.
But speaking about black people specifically, there still is a huge racial saturation in most US cities due to the racist history, and the parts which are populated mostly by minorities are heavily underserved, like the education isn't as good as white (rich) areas etc, and in some cases there are safety hazards like lead paint on the walls which is proven to impair people's cognitive function if they're exposed to it for longer amounts of time. So yes statistically it's still more difficult to become successful as a person of color in the US.
Here's Morgan Freeman telling black youths that if he can make it, they can too. Then in comes Lemon with "No you can't." Fuck that guy.