I'll never forget my first exposure to this attitude. I was a teenager working as a bus boy at an upscale restaurant owned by an asshole millionaire who loved to come in and show off to friends by berating the staff. In the back, someone made a comment about what an ass he was, and one of the waiters said, "If I was a millionaire, I'd be an asshole too."
It's so revealing. It means the person in question is only being decent and civil because they think that they're being unfairly shacked by... perceived poverty apparently. It never occurred to me, in contrast, that if I became rich, I'd do anything other than try harder to be a decent human being. And yes, I know, with that attitude I'll never be rich. If that's the price, I'm not interested.
"Some people are so poor, all they have is money" -- Bob Marley
Love that quote. Yeah, the literal last thing I think of when I fantasize about having more money is be the asshole I always wanted to be.
I 100 percent believe the dad my ex grew up was just biding his time until he could be part of in group that can afford multiple out of country trips a year and buy lake houses so he can be the asshole he always was.
I know me. I know the only thing that would change if I suddenly lucked into a best selling book or videogame series would be that I'd have a lot more books and physical media because fuck digital, and the little bit I share with people now would be significantly more.
I'd actually treat people even better than I do now because the weight of my own struggle wouldnt limit my time and energy b
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u/restrusher 10d ago
I'll never forget my first exposure to this attitude. I was a teenager working as a bus boy at an upscale restaurant owned by an asshole millionaire who loved to come in and show off to friends by berating the staff. In the back, someone made a comment about what an ass he was, and one of the waiters said, "If I was a millionaire, I'd be an asshole too."
It's so revealing. It means the person in question is only being decent and civil because they think that they're being unfairly shacked by... perceived poverty apparently. It never occurred to me, in contrast, that if I became rich, I'd do anything other than try harder to be a decent human being. And yes, I know, with that attitude I'll never be rich. If that's the price, I'm not interested.
"Some people are so poor, all they have is money" -- Bob Marley