That’s a really poor metric, because that encompasses many salaried jobs.
But yes, it’s ultimately just about whether or not you are selling your time for money, or if you have acquired enough money to exploit the labor of others to make yourself more money without doing anything yourself.
You’re middle class if you’re still working for your money. You’re rich when your money works for you.
A $5 million a year actor/athlete still has to work; they are also paying for their trainers, agents, dietitians, clothes etc. They are upper middle class.
A trust fund baby with an income of $1 million a year is the rich one. imho.
Except that the rich know who to bribe with campaign contributions.
Look at Ronald Reagan. As an actor, he was not a giant star. Plenty of folks got a higher salary. Reagan lucked into a job as spokesman for General Electric, at the time one of the biggest companies in the world. Reagan hung out with the big shots and introduced them to his Hollywood buddies; in return he got stock tips and investment opportunities that made him rich.
Somewhat unrelated but… can anyone define “rich”? How much money before one is deemed rich? Where is the line drawn between rich and non-rich?
Here’s a couple of good starting points for the line:
if you have to sell your time/labour for money, you’re not rich.
if you can take a day off and not need to tell anyone about it and not lose money because of it, you’re rich.
That’s a really poor metric, because that encompasses many salaried jobs.
But yes, it’s ultimately just about whether or not you are selling your time for money, or if you have acquired enough money to exploit the labor of others to make yourself more money without doing anything yourself.
Most people with salaried jobs are not rich
That’s what I’m saying.
Is your main income through capital or labour. That simple. Always been.
You’re middle class if you’re still working for your money. You’re rich when your money works for you.
A $5 million a year actor/athlete still has to work; they are also paying for their trainers, agents, dietitians, clothes etc. They are upper middle class.
A trust fund baby with an income of $1 million a year is the rich one. imho.
It’s more vibes-based than anything else
Except that the rich know who to bribe with campaign contributions.
Look at Ronald Reagan. As an actor, he was not a giant star. Plenty of folks got a higher salary. Reagan lucked into a job as spokesman for General Electric, at the time one of the biggest companies in the world. Reagan hung out with the big shots and introduced them to his Hollywood buddies; in return he got stock tips and investment opportunities that made him rich.