There are many reasons to be angry at the people behind the financial crisis, the various bankers and regulators and politicians and con-people. You can be angry over the destruction of the economy, the poverty, the lost opportunities. But those things are old hat, so let me throw in another reason to be filled with rage.
These immoral idiots dealt a serious blow to the work ethic.
Sure we all know down deep that the idea of "hard work means success" wasn't always true, but the idea of it was important. Hard work could mean success, despite the many challenges people may face. We knew many people had the odds stacked against them, but there was at least that hope. It's a good idea at least.
Well, thanks to the people dicing and slicing loans and the lobbyists and the I'm sure plenty of people feel they can write that off.
Work hard, get ahead, and watch your savings be destroyed because a few people paid more money than some Gross National products played games with the world economy. Find your bank has melted down because some over-lobbied politician decided to cut regulatory policy, and there goes the loan for your new business.
Want to get rich? Drop your ethics and morals and go and find ways to play games with numbers so you can collect a lot of bonuses before you drop out of your sinking company. What to get ahead? Why not sell your soul and do whatever it takes no matter whoever it hurts, because all these guys did.
How to you explain to people the value of hard work in the light of watching a bunch of overpaid number-jugglers and conmen make a ton of money and not care what happened?
Of course that doesn't change me. I don't want it to. I'm sure the damage is done however. How do you explain a good work ethic in a world where people get rich wrecking everything?
There's financial damage, political damage, personal damage. But the economic meltdown has also created cultural damage.
– Steven Savage