I made a comment about this man and this ongoing feature that the FP speech police did not like so they took it down. Do you remember the 7 words you cannot say on television (1972)? I did not say any of them and I dare not say any of them here and have the ladies clutching their pearls. I said this guy was a receptacle for the byproduct of a certain cleaning process...so what? He is. I also subscribe to Matt Taibbi and he made a very brief announcement about his speech policy "I don't have one." You may want to look into that ladies.
I feel sorry for Ben. He's ashamed of his own family's wealth. Producing this video made him feel good for a little while, but in the end, he will return to his problem, now even larger due to this publication. You need help young man, the answer is in the mirror.
everything in life, everything is just like a coin. there's always two sides and to get a complete picture you must know both. i like the way your article leaves them both in.
Without meaning to make this religious, Ben ought to think about the ancient wisdom that's wrapped up in the Tenth Commandment regarding covetousness. Nothing good comes of fixating on what someone else has and wishing it was theirs. Ben's entire premise is built on an underlying assumption of envy, if not on his part, then surely on behalf of the not-so-well off. I applaud many of the people he interviewed who at least seem to avoid falling into that bottomless void.
Ben, ignore the haters. Your videos are the best thing at The Free Press.
I love seeing these little glimpses into parts of the USA that I would never otherwise see.
And it parallels what I see here in Oz: whatever shrill pronouncements might be made by media pundits (of either side) here in Australia... the general person in the street - in the large swathes of the country beyond the few inner suburbs in which the media makers live - are not that fussed about Issues. They simply want to lead the best life they possibly can.
Y’all, I don’t hate these!! I think Ben is hilarious. I like that he gets out of his comfort zone and he goes to these random events around America to show us the people there. And I honestly think the people he meets are great. I enjoyed the Mormons he met, the Mardi Gras, and the Reggae festival. He does seem a bit more stressed in this video than he does at the other ones.
I enjoy these videos but it's obvious that Kawaller comes from money. Finding someone who comes from a working class background (like Michael Moore in Roger and Me --before he became a rich, establishment liberal) would be even more fun to watch.
I must admit I enjoy his videos. I find them quite amusing. This video reminded me not to conflate willingness to spend money with actual wealth. Very often they just are not related.
I can't figure out if this is satire or not. If it's not, I feel sorry for this guy. If it is, perhaps I needed better satire-radar. I can usually pick it up... A moral failing.
Do people find these things entertaining? I just find it stressful and uninteresting.
"So leave it to me, when I descended upon the Kentucky Derby earlier this month, to start asking everyone about wealth inequality. I wanted to know if anyone in this ostentatious and largely Republican crowd thought there was anything to the idea that America is anything less than a pure meritocracy."
I don't understand the premise. Isn't wealth inequality entirely consistent with meritocracy? Why would the existence of wealth inequality signal that we're "less than a pure meritocracy," when my understanding of meritocracy is that people end up compensated based on the value of their contribution. This necessitates inequality. Thus, inequality is good.
A more interesting question would be to ask these people if they care more about income inequality or poverty, since these are mutually exclusive concerns. If you want to end income inequalitly then you support poverty, if you want to end poverty you support income inequality. I would love to hear which is prioritized by these people. Personally, I support ending poverty.
I'm trying to see it as such, but it's the same theme every week. Good satire requires some variation.
The underlying premise that wealthy conservatives spend their lives secretly hating gay people seems like something a moderately clever student would have grown out of by the time he left college.
But these days, colleges are more about indoctrination, so maybe this is progress.
I feel like I'm just watching a weekly series where Ben ventures outside of his liberal echo chamber to find that he's been lied to his whole life with the ultimate conclusion being Ben becomes a Republican. Life is different in the real world, Ben.
I made a comment about this man and this ongoing feature that the FP speech police did not like so they took it down. Do you remember the 7 words you cannot say on television (1972)? I did not say any of them and I dare not say any of them here and have the ladies clutching their pearls. I said this guy was a receptacle for the byproduct of a certain cleaning process...so what? He is. I also subscribe to Matt Taibbi and he made a very brief announcement about his speech policy "I don't have one." You may want to look into that ladies.
I feel sorry for Ben. He's ashamed of his own family's wealth. Producing this video made him feel good for a little while, but in the end, he will return to his problem, now even larger due to this publication. You need help young man, the answer is in the mirror.
everything in life, everything is just like a coin. there's always two sides and to get a complete picture you must know both. i like the way your article leaves them both in.
Without meaning to make this religious, Ben ought to think about the ancient wisdom that's wrapped up in the Tenth Commandment regarding covetousness. Nothing good comes of fixating on what someone else has and wishing it was theirs. Ben's entire premise is built on an underlying assumption of envy, if not on his part, then surely on behalf of the not-so-well off. I applaud many of the people he interviewed who at least seem to avoid falling into that bottomless void.
Ben, I love these snippets of American Life. I look forward to them. In a world of so much angst, these are so fun.
thank you
Ben, ignore the haters. Your videos are the best thing at The Free Press.
I love seeing these little glimpses into parts of the USA that I would never otherwise see.
And it parallels what I see here in Oz: whatever shrill pronouncements might be made by media pundits (of either side) here in Australia... the general person in the street - in the large swathes of the country beyond the few inner suburbs in which the media makers live - are not that fussed about Issues. They simply want to lead the best life they possibly can.
Y’all, I don’t hate these!! I think Ben is hilarious. I like that he gets out of his comfort zone and he goes to these random events around America to show us the people there. And I honestly think the people he meets are great. I enjoyed the Mormons he met, the Mardi Gras, and the Reggae festival. He does seem a bit more stressed in this video than he does at the other ones.
So good. So good. So good.
I enjoy these videos but it's obvious that Kawaller comes from money. Finding someone who comes from a working class background (like Michael Moore in Roger and Me --before he became a rich, establishment liberal) would be even more fun to watch.
I must admit I enjoy his videos. I find them quite amusing. This video reminded me not to conflate willingness to spend money with actual wealth. Very often they just are not related.
I am a huge fan of Bari Weiss and Douglas Murray. However, I do not understand why they permit this drivel and that from River Page on The Free Press.
Meritocracy is the only way to go. Equality of opportunity, not outcome.
Objection! Meritocracy also has its faults.
I'm sensing communist leanings "Vlad"... Please elaborate...
PS
My Dad's a Vlad. Great name. Vladimir, Vlado...
I can't figure out if this is satire or not. If it's not, I feel sorry for this guy. If it is, perhaps I needed better satire-radar. I can usually pick it up... A moral failing.
Do people find these things entertaining? I just find it stressful and uninteresting.
"So leave it to me, when I descended upon the Kentucky Derby earlier this month, to start asking everyone about wealth inequality. I wanted to know if anyone in this ostentatious and largely Republican crowd thought there was anything to the idea that America is anything less than a pure meritocracy."
I don't understand the premise. Isn't wealth inequality entirely consistent with meritocracy? Why would the existence of wealth inequality signal that we're "less than a pure meritocracy," when my understanding of meritocracy is that people end up compensated based on the value of their contribution. This necessitates inequality. Thus, inequality is good.
A more interesting question would be to ask these people if they care more about income inequality or poverty, since these are mutually exclusive concerns. If you want to end income inequalitly then you support poverty, if you want to end poverty you support income inequality. I would love to hear which is prioritized by these people. Personally, I support ending poverty.
I think this is satire folks. At least I hope it is.
The definition of a busybody: Someone who is worried that somewhere someone is having a good time.
Go ahead, indulge in Luxury Beliefs. See if we care.
Or as Buddy Hackett once said, how come everyone I hate is having a good time in Las Vegas.
I'm trying to see it as such, but it's the same theme every week. Good satire requires some variation.
The underlying premise that wealthy conservatives spend their lives secretly hating gay people seems like something a moderately clever student would have grown out of by the time he left college.
But these days, colleges are more about indoctrination, so maybe this is progress.
I feel like I'm just watching a weekly series where Ben ventures outside of his liberal echo chamber to find that he's been lied to his whole life with the ultimate conclusion being Ben becomes a Republican. Life is different in the real world, Ben.