Key Points:
- The phenomenon that the poor tend to defend over the rich stems from two main reasons: Cognitive Dissonance aLogical fallacy
- when faced with events that contradict your previous perceptions Our brain will do anything to keep the new information compatible with the original information.
- The sustainable solution is that we should stand up and face it. avoid knowing the truth questioning unfairness and the rights they deserve
The rich get richer because they are smart, educated, well educated, and hold the market in the right direction. As for the poor, they still have to keep their heads down to work. just because they are not as hardworking and not as smart as the rich How true is this logic?
name book “Saving capitalism” byRobert Reich (Robert Reich) Former Labor Minister in government Bill Clinton (Bill Clinton) talks about the capitalist system that allows everyone to compete freely that What people expect from this system is social development through hard work. So that one day the status will change from the poor to the rich. But in reality it is not so. And this system does not equalize the area so everyone starts from the same starting point.
Reich gave an additional example to make it clearer that the compensation of executive employees has increased by as much as 940 percent since 1978. If you go back to 1968, the period The difference between the pay of executives and employees is about 20 times different. and the latest In 2018, executive jobs earned 278 times more wages than executive workers.
Reich pointed out that in this situation Can we still protect the executives or not? Much of the pay comes from working harder and more diligently than an employee who works 40 hours a week. On the other hand, some may have to work more overtime than that. and even receive disproportionate compensation
- Protect yourself with “Cognitive Dissonance”
When humans are faced with situations that contradict their original beliefs. Our brain will try to find a variety of reasons to choose to be comfortable. by Leon Festiner (Leon Festinger) An American psychologist named this phenomenon. “Cognitive Dissonance” or inconsistent perception
Festinger has been studying by arranging a sample group for boys to do activities together which is a difficult and meaningless activity Imagine a SOTUS welcome event where new students often get together to do some extreme activities. let everyone go through hardships together to make acquaintance as soon as possible Although there is nothing to prove it These activities will make everyone love and close to each other.
So is the Festinger test. They feel they have had a good experience. Feeling united after doing meaningless activities that Festinger deliberately set in motion. “Cognitive Dissonance” Explain that when we are faced with situations that conflict with our previous beliefs, the brain will do anything to rationalize it as much as possible. during difficult times We tend to put together things that seem illogical to reduce the “inconsistent”
for example previous generations I often say that to the new generation They were successful because they had gone through difficult times before, or even the poor, who often defended the immoral actions of the rich saying, This is because this group of people is more educated, smarter, more hardworking, etc., despite the fact that there are still many “blue collar” people or laborers who work more than 10 hours a day, more than 50 hours a week. But they get less than half the compensation of executives.
Experts describe this phenomenon as Because of the unfair acceptance of the system – get up and face the truth. equal to accepting that we are being taken advantage of Once accepted, what do we do next? To look down and pretend not to know, it looks weak. Or if they rise to challenge themselves, they fear they will be excluded from society. “Cognitive Dissonance” to break up the incompatibilities of the original data set
In addition, the definition of “middle class” It’s another part that is very controversial. Most people think it was Middle Class, butIf you consider the income structure according to the government’s statistical reports, it will be found that there are not many people whose income does not reach the middle class level. And most Thai people are not middle class either. But if we receive such information, it means that we push ourselves down to the definition of being. “lower class” or not when that is not the definition many people want Then they use a method to hide this discrepancy again by “cheat yourself” That we are still middle class, not very rich, but not poor in society.
- Connect all logic “Fallacy” for peace of mind
In addition to self-thinking use of logic or “Fallacy” is another element of reasoning to avoid the truth Elements of catastrophic logic include trying to be neutral. Eliminate all other options and include what you think is right. Please refer to the reason for the vague protection. Including linking things yourself, which may not be related to each other. to be used to confirm the principle to be more reliable But when asked in detail Let me explain for clarity. The speaker will not be able to answer and give a causal link. Therefore, this description “logic of action” is obvious
The reason is similar to one of “Cognitive Dissonance” That is, if it is accepted, we will find that Life is full of chaos not being able to control the whole thing for some people Accepting bad things is scary. This group of people therefore use reasons of disaster to “cloud” the bad things that are happening. Choosing to transcend rather than accept in order to relax. no matter how disgusting it is
We give the reason for the low wage increase as the country is not ready skills not yet reached Success is not happening anytime soon, etc., rather than waking up to the fact that we are oppressed Selling power in exchange for money with an unfair share thatin the end This way of thinking is constantly being challenged. And the way out doesn’t turn around. but the truth must be accepted and realize what is the root of the problem Because everyone deserves better. And the injustice that happens can change.
References: Ex Capsa Politics, Investerest, The Momentum, Prospect Magazine, Medium.
