are rich people better than you?

No.

are rich people smarter, more knowledgeable, more clever, or more hard-working than you? *

No.

are people who went to h*rv*rd smarter, more knowledgeable, more clever, or more hard-working than you? *

honestly,

i don't think so.

are rich people (politicians, artists, musicians, writers, scientists, whatever) more talented than you?

No.

(not inherently, anyway. they just have had more opportunities than you. and the number of opportunities someone has access to, is directly affected by a multitude of pervasive systemic injustices.)

are rich people "better" people, or more moral people than you?

Nope.

are rich people stronger than you, or more powerful than you?

they do objectively have more systemic resources, but that's not the only kind of power that human beings can have. and it also isn't real strength.

do rich people work harder than you?

No.

The more poor or Disabled you are, the harder you have to work to even keep yourself alive.

Rich people do not work harder than you, even if you're unable to work, unable to work in a traditional way, or unemployed.

are rich people more loving, more understanding, more compassionate, kinder than you?

No. Of course not.

^ for the context of this particular post, "rich people" includes people who are rich in social capital, not just financial capital — which includes me, and includes well-known leftists, even if they don't make a lot of financial money.

i'm not any better or "smarter" or stronger or more moral or more knowledgeable than you, just bc i have a platform.

also people who seem to "work harder" in traditional forms of work, and/or who think they work "harder" than other people in general, aren't better or more deserving or more valuable than people who can't work at all or work less, btw!

this doesn't mean that you can't be proud of yourself for something you did, your hard work, or a job well done. those are two different things :) [smiling face emoticon]

Abilities are just one factor in why some people might make more money than other human beings.

And I'm not just talking about clear-cut physical/mental abilities, like walking or talking or being able to do math (although, that last one is more along the lines of what i'm thinking about).

I'm talking about, for instance, how the ability to learn quickly — which not everyone might have, or be able to develop, and that's okay! — can beget other abilities which are valued by capitalist society.

I can learn quickly (sometimes). Depending on the year (bc my abilities, and human beings' abilities in general, fluctuate!), I can write more than 10,000 words in one day without stopping. I also have had years where I felt like I could not summon a single word. I can write more than 10,000 words in one day, but I can't read books because of trauma. I can do my own social media marketing on a good year, but I can't eat regularly or sleep more than a few hours every night or shower regularly. I can write a lot, but I can't work for a boss, I literally can't.

Being able to learn (an ability that not everyone has — and this also fluctuates!) means you can learn new abilities, and some of those abilities are more valued by white supremacist capitalist society than others. And you might think of those as "skills", or fancy degrees validated by inherently corrupt institutions (academia, schools — i do not think every aspect of schools is bad, but contemporary schools in usameriKKKa are a form of prison, and formalized academia in western countries has deep systemic problems).

The definition of "skill" is a particular ability, or the ability to do something well.

Having certain abilities/skills or not doesn't actually make you a better or more valuable or more deserving of resources person than anybody else, by ANY means.

Having more impressive abilities than another human being does not actually imbue you with any more intrinsic value, or moral value, than them.

Ableism is capitalism, bitch!!!!!

remember to hit that Like + Subscribe button (i.e. support me monthly with money)!

* once again, the construction of "smartness" / "intelligence" in our current society is ableist <=> white supremacist <=> capitalist <=> classist <=> racist <=> misogynist <=> sexist <=> lookist etc., deeply flawed. but i'm trying to make a point, do you see?**

**an arguably ableist metaphor, but Disabled people aren't a monolith, and not everybody has the same views on what kind of ability-related language is acceptable or not

re: my use of the word "bitch" — i went back and forth on this for many years. the word "bitch" used to upset me years ago, even though nobody actually called me that back then — at least to my face lol! i will never be able to please everybody with my wording, which is great bc i am not here to please anybody at all. 🤷🏻‍♂️ [light-skinned short-haired person shrugging emoji]