tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973827.post7931710254454947012..comments2024-01-11T07:40:01.736-05:00Comments on The Stopped Clock: David Brooks on the Work EthicAaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16523334580402022332noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973827.post-23178564863469131632011-12-04T13:56:14.649-05:002011-12-04T13:56:14.649-05:00We have a population of people who work long, hard...We have a population of people who work long, hard days, both at physical labor and at 'desk jobs', and I do see that there is such a thing as "work ethic". I can also see a cultural aspect to work ethic, although not so much the one Brooks describes. Germany has a history of using Turkish workers for menial labor.<br /><br />Part of the problem with "bad work ethic" may arise from an absence of role models, but it seems to me that there are a lot of hard-working parents who have entitled children who don't understand why they can't start at the top, and a culture that increasingly favors fame over accomplishment and has long favored inherited wealth and unearned income over hard work.<br /><br />Entitlement works against a work ethic, desperation may strengthen it, but sometimes when somebody acts like a cog in a dead-end job, who sees no real return in doing anything beyond what it takes to get a paycheck and avoid being fired, it's not because they wouldn't work harder if given opportunity, it's because they recognize the reality of their situation.<br /><br />Think of the subset of workers after the fall of communism who were able to transform inefficient, state-run factories into profitable ventures. For those who were positioned to take advantage of the opportunities, the change of incentives transformed their "work ethic". But after what seemed like a promising start the oligarchs and their kleptocracy took over, thier immense reward largely unconnected to work or effort, and Russia again stagnates.Atticusnoreply@blogger.com