‘What about somebody in a coal mine — wouldn’t you say he works as hard as you? Why should you get paid so much more than that guy?’
If this is a question to yourself, then my response is: start sending part of your paycheck to the guy in the coal mine. Don't blame someone else for society's ills and not be willing to fix such problems yourself. Find a miner, adopt him, send him half your paycheck, keep tabs on him: how the job's going, how the family's doing, etc.
If this is a question for me, a creator of software, then my response is: I build things that enable new activities, I don't perform a task that maintains someone else's status quo. I (as a freelancer) or my employer (when I'm an employee) have found someone willing to pay what we charge. Period. How am I able to do that? By learning. Continuously. By adapting to changes in technology and the market. Why do I get paid more than the coal miner? Because he has settled for that life. If he needs something more, he needs to learn how to attain it.
But maybe, just maybe, our coal mining friend is doing what he loves. If he's happy ... leave him alone.
>start sending part of your paycheck to the guy in the coal mine
...that sounds incredibly insulting. It's not like he's homeless.
>Why do I get paid more than the coal miner? Because he has settled for that life.
bullshit. This is exactly the kind of attitude that the article is criticizing.
>maybe, our coal mining friend is doing what he loves
Maybe, and that's great. But for most people, "doing what you love" is simply not viable, at least career-wise. Don't forget how incredibly fortunate you are to love doing a job that also happens to pay extremely well.
I would be cautious with this callous mentality towards the miner. I wouldn't jump so quickly to the conclusion that he/she is not "learning. Continuously" as you say you are. The miner may very well be. The issue the article raises is a good one, what validity is there that someone can put the value they create so much higher then another.
What happens one day when your profession is no longer well paid? Think for a minute that you did not have the mental capacity to compete in the new 'tech world' in 20 years. Would you expect that you are paid in accordance with your lack of ability, or would you hope you are still given an equal shot.
Personally this article hits at the heart of the somewhat libertarian style commentary on Hacker New. One that I myself am all too engulfed in as well. Perhaps we aren't as valuable as we may think?
If this is a question to yourself, then my response is: start sending part of your paycheck to the guy in the coal mine. Don't blame someone else for society's ills and not be willing to fix such problems yourself. Find a miner, adopt him, send him half your paycheck, keep tabs on him: how the job's going, how the family's doing, etc.
If this is a question for me, a creator of software, then my response is: I build things that enable new activities, I don't perform a task that maintains someone else's status quo. I (as a freelancer) or my employer (when I'm an employee) have found someone willing to pay what we charge. Period. How am I able to do that? By learning. Continuously. By adapting to changes in technology and the market. Why do I get paid more than the coal miner? Because he has settled for that life. If he needs something more, he needs to learn how to attain it.
But maybe, just maybe, our coal mining friend is doing what he loves. If he's happy ... leave him alone.