The Almighty Hamster
Paladin Knight
So, I've been at college studying Social Sciences for about 7 months now and have 4 months of the course left to go. It's not panned out the way I thought it would. I do not feel happy or certain. I'm a working-class guy from a housing estate, and even though it's becoming a lot more common for people of my background to go to university, the graduate employment, salary disparity and overall wellbeing is very concerning. I don't have an idea on what I specifically want to do and I don't have my life in order yet. I feel cognitively and socially stunted from covid. Part of me feels like abandoning it and going into a more specialized niche for better job stability. The salary is pretty high because trades are always in demand. And to be honest, the things you learn there can be learned online through courses if you are truly interested enough. It's more about the allure of the "university experience" - getting student accomodation in a new place, meeting new people, going out drinking and partying. For me, that isn't applicable so I don't get to live the frat bro life. It would be high school 2.0 and I don't want to relive that. In my course, it was just rambling at different terminology and ideologies. I could learn that from some Indian guy in his bedroom on Khan Academy. I still believe in core schooling as it prepares you for life, but beyond high school anything else is surplus. You have to really know what you want and have an image for it.
Anyone can regurgitate their knowledge on a page without critically thinking. Working 9-9-7, 80 hours a week, studying hard won't reflect because grind for the sake of grind doesn't generate money. We're sold that lie in school, where if we just "study hard" then "anything is possible". If that were the case, China wouldn't have massive youth unemployment rates despite going from a nation of impoverished agrarian peasants to overeducated stereotyped geniuses. We have to face the reality that it isn't even possible to climb the ladder anymore - and if you do, there are no jobs for it. Is it worth 5 or more years of your life without a garuanteed end product? Is it worth the debt and mental suffering? The boomer economy is over, the job market doesn't work that way anymore. Companies can outsource that labour, they don't need hundreds of employees. Covid proved the economy can function at <30% of people working. Most jobs are non-essential and when the economy suffers, you're gonna want one that will always be in demand. If you can't simply explain what your job title is, it's probably bullshit. A fisherman catches fish, a farmer farms food, a teacher teaches stuff, a builder builds stuff. That's my understanding of it. Anyone else in the same boat? I feel a bit nihilistic about the future. There won't be a full-scale collapse but don't expect there to be such a thing as a welfare state within our lifetimes. The utmost basic of things we take for granted now will be a pipedream in the future. Neo-feudalism on steroids.
Anyone can regurgitate their knowledge on a page without critically thinking. Working 9-9-7, 80 hours a week, studying hard won't reflect because grind for the sake of grind doesn't generate money. We're sold that lie in school, where if we just "study hard" then "anything is possible". If that were the case, China wouldn't have massive youth unemployment rates despite going from a nation of impoverished agrarian peasants to overeducated stereotyped geniuses. We have to face the reality that it isn't even possible to climb the ladder anymore - and if you do, there are no jobs for it. Is it worth 5 or more years of your life without a garuanteed end product? Is it worth the debt and mental suffering? The boomer economy is over, the job market doesn't work that way anymore. Companies can outsource that labour, they don't need hundreds of employees. Covid proved the economy can function at <30% of people working. Most jobs are non-essential and when the economy suffers, you're gonna want one that will always be in demand. If you can't simply explain what your job title is, it's probably bullshit. A fisherman catches fish, a farmer farms food, a teacher teaches stuff, a builder builds stuff. That's my understanding of it. Anyone else in the same boat? I feel a bit nihilistic about the future. There won't be a full-scale collapse but don't expect there to be such a thing as a welfare state within our lifetimes. The utmost basic of things we take for granted now will be a pipedream in the future. Neo-feudalism on steroids.
