Mark Zuckerberg, the 30-something billionaire founder of Facebook, hasn’t lived a ‘normal’ life…at least not at any point in the recent past. He grew up in a suburb of New York City and now hobnobs with the elites of Silicon Valley, at least when he’s not enjoying that massive chunk of Kauai that he recently purchased for his own private use.
So what do you do when you’ve become completely disconnected from the ‘foreign’ world that all of middle America calls ‘reality’ and have no idea why you just got massively blindsided by a national election that you thought was a foregone conclusion? Well, you take a trip to Williston, North Dakota.
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As Zuckerberg apparently learned for the first time while visiting oil workers in a tiny North Dakota town, there are entire industries that exist outside of Silicon Valley…industries that provide great wages and support thousands of American families. And, as it turns out, those people are sick and tired of having their jobs threatened by their own government and being demonized by Hollywood liberals for their efforts to provide economical access to energy.
Zuckerberg shared his full thoughts in a Facebook post:
The invention of new techniques to fracture rock (fracking) to extract oil led to a boom where tens of thousands of workers moved from all around the country to pursue new jobs in this industry.
They come here because these are good jobs where people with a high school diploma can make $100,000 a year.
When the Dakota Access Pipeline was approved, that removed $6-7 per barrel of cost from producing oil in the region, which brought more investment and jobs here. A number of people told me they had felt their livelihood was blocked by the government, but when Trump approved the pipeline they felt a sense of hope again. That word “hope” came up many times around this. One person told me the night the pipeline was approved, people lit fireworks and rode trucks with American flags down Main Street to celebrate.
Many people I talked to here acknowledged this, but also feel a sense of pride that their work contributes to serving real needs we all have every day — keeping our homes warm, getting to work, feeding us, and more. They believe competition from new sources of energy is good, but from their perspective, until renewables can provide most of our energy at scale, they are providing an important service we all rely on, and they wish they’d stop being demonized for it.
Of course, Zuckerberg also took the opportunity to cast the men he met as just a bunch of misogynist criminals…
This sudden influx of mostly men tripled the size of the town in just a few years. When oil prices dropped, some of this industry left and so did many people. This has led to some unique community dynamics.
First, the ratio of men to women in the city is now 10:1. That’s actually lower than 30:1 at its peak.
The women I met said they feel safe, but they had unique stories. Some told me about finding out their boyfriends had families back home.
This gender imbalance has led to crime though. It is well-documented across the world that societies with many more men than women have more crime.
…but, at least it’s a start…
Huh.
Noseberg made it out without a scratch?
How depressing….
One look at reality and returning to your billionaires insulated private jet set no worries life style does not make Zuckerberg aware of the destruction of American industry and the middle class comfortable life it once and should still be providing . I worked for the third largest steel company in the world in the ship building division from 1973 to 1984 . I bought a nice home took vacations and purchased new vehicles and all the conviences normal middle class people had at the time . And poof collapse from 84 to 85 took a $7,000 dollar cut in pay . It took my wife and I 10 years to play catch up and we delayed starting our family because we wanted to do the responsible thing for what ended up being 1 child instead of 2 or 3 ! Remember all during the next 20 years there was an ever tightening pressure on wages and benefits especially health and retirement which was nonexistent in the private sector . Yet we who were out here in fly over land kept peddling as fast as we could only to see our own government stab us in the back constantly in every way possible !
The only people I know who have retired comfortably all had government jobs . Jobs our taxes direct and indirect deficit spending destroying our buying power back door tax are forced to support . Zuckerberg and Gates don’t see us and really never will . Time will tell if the people responsible for the middle Americans demise will ever be truly held to account . So far we were indebted deeper to pay bonuses to those who screwed us for decades and continue to this day !
I used to have a mindset that said
1) make the money
2) spend the money
3) make more money.
I had several businesses, worked my ass off and was always hustling.
That kinda went away around 9/11. Sadly for me, I had just made a 7 figure profit on some real estate and had the same mindset. I sure enjoyed that money but I have found it very difficult to replace it the way I used to.
I’m not looking for any violin music, I have no regrets and my only child recently passed on so I keep making beauty(and an occasional sale), enjoy my gal & dogs and retain my unbridled optimism.
I can tell you if you’re young, there is a world of opportunity out there, working with men in a masculine culture. I’m a bit too old to learn ship fitting or jump to Midland to work a rig but skills like this are in big demand and it’s pretty good coin. You can take them just about anywhere in the world and work.
Making billions has never been in my line of sight-that much money can’t be healthy, can it? Zuck sure is the poster boi for that, isn’t he? Detached comes to mind. He’s a huge pusher for H1-B job stealers and the “global” community, which translates into, whatever means more cash for me.
Boat Guy…me too…sailboat….you are right my friend. Unfortunately, the governing elite will continue to collect their bonuses regardless of the deficit spending habits. It is a fact that the ruling elite grow in prosperity during hard economic times. They are experts in passing the cost of debt down to the middle class. They try to take the moral high ground by insisting that the poor need more of our financial support, but not theirs. If you look at just about every elected official they some how all retire as millionaires, with medical benefits up the wazoo, and mountain cabins or beach front properties. Can you say Bernie Sanders? Term limits, retirement from public office means exactly that..no lobbying..no jobs allowed with any company that donated to your election..same medical as Joe Nobody…no government retirement plan–get your own. These freaking people need to learn that ” government service” means exactly that so that they aren’t on the “tit” for the rest of their lives.
My Take: Trump won cuz HildeBeast called 50% of the country ‘Deplorable”. Here was a seasoned politician (a scumbag) calling half the country’s voters ‘Deplorable’ – good way to give votes to the opposition.
BTW, I have a sorta new Tee emblazoned with ‘I am a Deplorable’. It is a mediun-dark grey with white lettering – very sharp looking.
Couple of good comments so far.
That sneaky fucker is up to something. He’s either going to run for office or he’s figuring out how to get that last remaining jingle of change left in the average American’s pocket.
I have no use for people like him, or his products. Nothing but a con man. Unfortunately, in today’s world, they are the ones rewarded. This is not always the case, BTW, just this particular slice of time has graced assholes like this with the riches of society. Just ask Ken Lay….oh thats right, when he fell, he literally fell…dead.
Anyway, the point being, someone like Zuckerfucker is only buoyed up by a perfect storm of events that push his (and similar) fortunes to the top of the heap in a particular time slice. His entire “business” is formed on fraud and human stupidity, and like the many before him that were living “the life” something will bring him down a notch as well. Be it nature, arrogance, ignorance etc.
As far as him going out in to the world from his sheltered life, I would imagine it is one of two things, A. He has his white Jewish guilt to contend with, and figures he will show his critics he is “one of them”, or B. (the most likely BTW) he is just another POS politician in the making pushing his twisted agenda (for our own good) so he can run for POTUS and feed his ego. I would say, not likely he would win, but anything is possible in this world of twisted logic, bad or no reasoning ability, and everything being a scam….Just look at the Cardashians….
Nothing but a con man. Unfortunately, in today’s world, they are the ones rewarded.
You got that right. Look who’s president.
Mark, I hate to give you the bad news, but you will never understand. You may trick yourself into thinking you understand, but you won’t. I grew up in a small Western Pennsylvania town and watched the government idiots botch one thing after another. The town is now devastated, like so many others across America. I lived it, you haven’t and never will.
HERE IS MORE FUEL FOR THE FIRE: THIS HOW ONE OF THE ELITE OF OUR GOVERNMENT SEE’S HIMSELF.
When a president dies, the country pays
for their burial. In the case of a president like JFK, who was a war hero
and assassinated in the middle of a term, something extravagant is in
order. His burial at Arlington with the memorial paid for by the people
cost almost $4 million in today’s money, adjusted for inflation. The
Kennedy family paid for the casket, vault and the eternal flame.
Ronald Reagan, one of the most influential
men in history, is buried in California at his Presidential Library, paid
for by donations from the people and the Reagan family. In fact, other
than Kennedy, which we can all agree was warranted, no president has ever
cost the taxpayers more than $100K in today’s money to bury.
The clause in the Presidential Contract
enacted by congress in 1819 states that the president shall receive the
burial service deemed fit for his stature and that the cost of the funeral
and burial plot will be paid for by the people of a grateful nation. While
every president who has died in modern history, except Reagan, took
advantage of that perk of the presidency, none have gone so far that
anyone would ever have noticed. Until now that is.
Barack Obama has just submitted his plans
for burial in a plot that will house his entire family, citing the
Kennedys, the Tafts and the Roosevelts as precedent, inside a monument he
had designed to celebrate the nation’s first black president. The
monument, will cost the taxpayers roughly $120 million and will be listed
as a national historical place with 24 hour protection from the 3rd US
Infantry Regiment, just like the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
The memorial would be built immediately
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upon approval and occupy the Northeast quadrant of the lawn near the
Washington Monument with a view of the White House:
The monument itself would include quotes
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from his years as president along with a giant bronze statue and burial
crypts for him and his family under a large arch:
Obama deserves an unceremonious burial in the garbage dump nearest to the site of his (future) death. Nothing more.
Fuck it, I think the Senate should just declare Obama a god upon his demise.
I hope I outlive him. I should be up there in age by then and wouldn’t have much to lose if I got caught undoing that monument to a narcissistic mental disorder on display.
Sounds like a crock of shit satire…created for those of us who love to hate any and all things relating to Obama. It did get my uproar motor going for a few minutes until I realized I almost took the bait.
If he were to have majored in Sociology had he remained at Harvard, we would have been confronted with an even greater problem for humanity. Close call!
I think Zuckerberg getting out and seeing the country is a good thing. He went through a period where he killed his own food, too. So he is nothing if not curious. Me and most of my friends were quite liberal as young men, we grew out of it. Maybe Zuck will, too.
Worth 40 billion dollars and his wardrobe consists of a gray t-shirt.
Noticed that also–all 3 pictures
Obama will be lucky if the sharks choose to eat him, once those he’s damaged decide they’ve had enough. First black President? We can only hope he’s the last, if that’s what we’re going to get.