Is this desperation encouraged because many can exploit those that are trapped? Is this the 21st century’s version of slavery? — 0 thru 9

It seems to me that there is a concerted effort to increase dissatisfaction - it's called advertising. "You're not really free, you're not a real man, you won't get the girl or have any fun unless you buy Dr Foul's 4x4 penis extension. " Schools are right on board, endless competition, endless measurement of performance, and 'there can only be one winner (and everyone else is worthless).'

Time was when it was perfectly honourable to be poor, and to make no progress up the greasy pole, now, you call it "trapped". But the trap is not poverty, the trap is seeing wealth as freedom. This is what leads to desperation.

:up: Yep, advertising is the front-line attack on our minds. We are so used to it that it is nearly omnipresent and invisible, thus increasing its effectiveness. But when one sees how it changes a child from happy and content to grasping and worried, the twisted machine is evident. It is like having an anorexic body image, except it is about every aspect of your life.

And like you say, schools in general just follow the program. Winning is the carrot on a stick that is forever out of reach. Endless competition turns a game into propaganda and mind control. The “losers”, aka the greater majority, are primed for feeling bad, are at the unmercy of advertisers. Just another day at the offense.

I'm personally plagued by the need to stand out from the crowd. I'm not sure why this feeling in me exists. When I see others taking selfies I realize that my selfie taking practices are just as silly but continue.

There is a sense that one day if I have taken up enough space on the internet, I might be able to convince others that time spent with me is tine worth spending. I do model on Xtube but I'm terribly average. I make a little money, but it's chump change that pays off the student loans. Loans play into it too. If I was just attractive enough to get a free pass for the things I want to do then I would be happy.

But even when wrapping up a three month trip to Germany I am burdened. My privileged ass is still confronting the dread of becoming a very different being then I have been. For three months I have tried to make enough by exploiting my body under the name of freedom, in pursuit of freedom, but it has failed and there are thousands like me who place their bodies at the frontlines of pleasure.

It's always been in bad faith but when I make one hundred, two hundred a month doing something I would normally do and not get paid, I feel a silly sense of being one step ahead of the crowd.

There's a lot more to be said. But for now just Google Risk Society Sociology and I think this concept recasts the original post about gambling and the feeling of desperation in an empirically grounded light. It's a phenomenon to be reckoned with.

Thanks for your reply. That seems to be a clear example of the mindset. It seems like you are resisting it and trying to be aware, which is about the best one can do. We seem surrounded by this thing which is like the tip of the capitalist spear. The theory of Risk Society is relevant, I agree.