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| Fifth Column |
| Handy New York Times "Class Calculator". Who says they're out-of-touch elitists? |
| 2005-06-06 |
| Lifted from a yearlong study by the New York Times about class structure in America, and how you don't belong. Fit yourself into their little categories, and see how you score! I got 51%, woohoo, I'm above average. |
| Posted by:gromky |
| #52 Went to Nantucket July 5th 1976 - the day after the island workers 200th 4th celebration/orgy on the beach. Was having a brew in one of the pubs and some Johnson & Johnson heirs sat down next to me. I had just had a wierdo try to pick me up to go do his wife so they were a breath of fresh air. The sisters donated time helping out at the emergency room and never ever wanted to hear of something as stupid as an orgy on the beach again. They had spent the late hours of the 4th and most of the 5th picking sand and shells out of parts of peoples bodies that were not designed for it. They really needed those drinks and were quite condesending to the white trash on Martha's Vineyard. Can't say I blamed them. The said no islanders were among the patients they had treated. Most were from Martha's Vineyard and Boston. Don't know where this comment is going but for some reason it seemed to fit the NYT calculator (old Nantucket vs New Rich) |
| Posted by: 3dc 2005-06-06 22:59 |
| #51 I got an 86, but I want to know how I stack up against Pinch Sulzburger. I guess I'll never know, because I didn't see "great-granddaddy bought a newspaper" in the "Occupation" section. |
| Posted by: Darth VAda 2005-06-06 22:55 |
| #50 Desert Blondie, of course your sweetie married up! You're a girl, right? (pthhht to all you male readers. Even if you disagree, you are all clever enough not to say so out loud, right?) I don't think, though, that I count as a true trophy wife. We married much too young for him to have discerned trophy attributes -- and I never did become a tall, slender blonde with a penchent for expensive jewelry and designer everything. ;-) But then, NYT types are so riveted on the attributes of the class they are in that they can't recognize their superiors -- an amusing mark of their inferiority, of course. As mentioned in this thread, character is a key one, as is attachment to reality, and the willingness to beat the snot out of NYT journalists who need it -- strictly for their own good, of course. Thank you all for the laughs -- it's been the kind of day that brings out the snottiness in me. Weather 92F with high humidity, a feeling of impending thunderstorms, Mr. Wife out on business dinners every night this week for the annual whatever-it-is, and I pushed too hard yesterday, so I'm paying for it today. /end whin[g]ing, I promise! |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-06-06 21:47 |
| #49 I would think a "mullett" haircut should weigh in somehow, as well as Trump-hair™ and bad combovers a la "the Levin©" |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-06-06 19:55 |
| #48 Hey half, any of 'em a Trans Camarobird? ;) eLarson, try "philanthropy specialist" or something like that. |
| Posted by: Desert Blondie 2005-06-06 19:00 |
| #47 Half wrote: "Lack of stairs to the trailer house hurt me purdy bad, 5 cars couldnt make up for the deficit." You forgot to say how many of the cars were in your front yard on cinder blocks. ;-) |
| Posted by: Tibor 2005-06-06 18:57 |
| #46 They don't have "millionaire playboy" either. How can I take this steen-king quiz if they can't even get my proper job description in there? |
| Posted by: eLarson 2005-06-06 18:43 |
| #45 ack! ima came owt 53 persentile. ocupashen got 80. evrythin went downmowntain frum their |
| Posted by: muck4doo 2005-06-06 18:25 |
| #44 trailing wife - Please, dahlink, this is the Times. You need to look under "trophy wife". ;P I'm a 77. My sweetie is a 75. Guess he married up. |
| Posted by: Desert Blondie 2005-06-06 17:29 |
| #43 Jeez__ How cum I score a 92 and everbody still calls me a swamp Yankee (Yankee redneck to those not from New England)? |
| Posted by: Ulumble Throluns9561 2005-06-06 16:04 |
| #42 what do you expect from a paper that has no class? |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-06-06 15:39 |
| #41 LotR - Try 'mass murderer' or 'killer of cute puppies and baby ducks' -- that is how the NYT views the military... Oh and for your terrorist out there who monitor Rantburg (I suspect there are a few) the NYT (and your hero Mike Al-moore) would classify you as 'miniutemen' or 'freedom fighters'..... |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-06-06 14:54 |
| #40 gonna haver try thisn wen ima get hoem |
| Posted by: muck4doo 2005-06-06 14:33 |
| #39 I went through the job menus and did not see military anywhere. I also scored 48, 51 and 58 depending on how I chose my job. They didn't have a category that was anywhere close. |
| Posted by: Laurence of the Rats 2005-06-06 13:47 |
| #38 Whoops, that should be upper 15% portion on comment #5. I guess I am going to have to get me a new typist.... And I agree with Tom as well... |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-06-06 13:32 |
| #37 I believe 'idle rich' is listed under "Senior fellow , Brookings Institution." Also "Contributor, Huffington's Post." |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2005-06-06 13:28 |
| #36 You know the other I found myself contemplating if Bush really is evil and Saddam is just a victim of bad management policies. Does that get me into the club or do I need more Kool Aid? Anyone know where I can get one of those fancy sashes? |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2005-06-06 13:25 |
| #35 Where is "idle rich" in the occupational category? |
| Posted by: eLarson 2005-06-06 13:12 |
| #34 CS - You should check out the official portraits of Khadaffy, Chavez, and Mugabe for fashion tips. A colorful sash (usually tri-color) and lots of doo-dads and bike sprockets are prolly req'd to get your Evil Tyrant™ ID card, not to mention the fawning attention of the MSM. You'll also need at least one radio and one TV station - so you can properly rant and rave and blame BusHitler and the Great Satan, etc., then demand aid and the full blueprints pkg for a deliverable nuke. I believe this last bit is part of the State Dept's Seditious Olde Money / Ivy League Snot Retirement Plan, but I could be wrong. Then I think you'll be Good to Go. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-06-06 13:11 |
| #33 Yay I always wanted to be an evil tyrant. Anyone need to be oppressed? Maybe I will check at the country club later today and see if there are any lower social types that need oppressing. Do I have to go to a class or something? I don't have a lot of experience in this area, but i am willing to learn. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2005-06-06 12:52 |
| #32 *Burp* |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2005-06-06 12:50 |
| #31 Depends, Cyber Sarge. If you like Proust, cheese and socialist policies, you are Good. If not, you are a racist oppressor who has made your fortune at the expense of brown men and womyn worldwide. You evil tyrant, you. |
| Posted by: BH 2005-06-06 12:43 |
| #30 I was 86% not sure if that is bad or good according to the times? |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2005-06-06 12:38 |
| #29 gromky: I got 51%, woohoo, I'm above average. You're working in a foreign clime, making Chinese scale for expats, not expat scale for expats. Adjust it for the Chinese income sale, and you'd be a lot higher. I expect that locals see you as a high-income foreign expat. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2005-06-06 12:31 |
| #28 How amusingly silly! I'll just have to have those NYTimes "journalists" over for tea, and make my own judgements. I shall, however, pick up a few things at the bakery -- no point in wasting my time baking for them with my own little hands. I save that for those who rate, like Rantburgers. Truly, any survey that doesn't rank house-spouse as the prestigious accessory that it's become (house-husbands being even more prestigious than us housewives), just demonstrates how out of touch with the real world these "journalists" are. And relying on gov't rankings to determine relative value -- how jejune! (Do, please, forgive my overt snobbishness, y'all, it is absolutely not directed at you. And the social pretenses of the 'Timers is so very ridiculous.) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-06-06 12:30 |
| #27 Lack of stairs to the trailer house hurt me purdy bad, 5 cars couldnt make up for the deficit. |
| Posted by: Half 2005-06-06 12:18 |
#26 One way to think of a person’s position in society is in terms of 4 factors – education, income, occupation and wealth (4 commonly used criteria for gauging class).Yeah, that's one way - if you're a self-centered, elitist twit. Or, like most normal people, you could judge it based on things like character and what a person does to help others and actually improve the world. Idiots. (71% - big whoop) |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2005-06-06 12:16 |
| #25 72nd percentile. Not bad for a redneck from Alabama living on a farm in the mountains of East Tennessee. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2005-06-06 12:00 |
| #24 Occupation "Lawyer" gets an 84th percentile -- is this screwed up or what! |
| Posted by: Tom 2005-06-06 11:57 |
| #23 In a related article, the WaPo went to the NASCAR races at Dover this weekend and discovered that the peasants like to *drink beer* and *party* at these types of events. Heavens, what's the world coming to? (Oh and also some of the unwashed are actually lawyers and stockbrokers out slumming. The Croquet, Lawn Tennis, and Squash Club must be notified immediately!) |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2005-06-06 11:53 |
| #22 Does this mean that I can piss on 6 out of ten people that I meet? Or should I just raise my nose and sniff at them? It's gotta be raise your nose and sniff at them. Look how far John F. Kerry got with it... And I agree 100% with Tom. |
| Posted by: Raj 2005-06-06 11:52 |
| #21 Oh and I scored 81 percent given my current data - the pending degree apparently means a lot to those people. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2005-06-06 11:48 |
| #20 Note also that these are prestige factors as conceived by the liberals who work at and for the New York Times. Conservatives have a different scale. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2005-06-06 11:39 |
| #19 OS: Does that make me a "patsy" of the rich in the NYT's eyes? Well there are some things money cannot buy, like self respect and knowing I have made a real difference in this world. In the calculator, reporters (64th percentile) are ranked higher than Financial Analysts (50th percentile). In the real world, reporters (if you're not Peter Jennings) would probably rank in the 1st percentile. Let's face it - military guys have a lot of prestige. When you move up through the ranks in corporate America, there's an aura associated with being an ex-military guy. An ex-reporter would be better off not mentioning his background. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2005-06-06 11:38 |
| #18 I got 86%, which is proof the calc's busted, cuz I've got no class |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-06-06 11:35 |
| #17 You know, we might be able to make something of this if we can get the raw data. Offer a service where people (the elite of course... not those peasants!) can fill out the questionair and get a 'secret code' which they can put on their business card so others can run a compatability check (via cell phone -- for a fee) and get either:
It would prove most popular in certain high school chics and parties. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-06-06 11:31 |
| #16 To most of us, OldSpook, you're in a far higher class than anyone at the NYT, no matter what their occupation, degree, income, or wealth. |
| Posted by: Tom 2005-06-06 11:13 |
| #15 Theres a slight problem: It has no real inclusion for a PhD candidate that has worked in the military and government for his living. The "wealth" I generated is of a kind that makes the others kind possible. And like any other soldier, I damn sure didnt get rich at it (but have done fairly well by "paying myself first" [10 percent off the top] and investing conservatively). Does that make me a "patsy" of the rich in the NYT's eyes? Well there are some things money cannot buy, like self respect and knowing I have made a real difference in this world. Besides that, I can kill any one of those uppity gits 7 different ways. [grin] |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2005-06-06 11:10 |
| #14 Whenever I see a "Wealth " column in a survey, I find it in my best interest not to take said survey as I would not wish to depress the shit out of myself for at least the remaninder of the day. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2005-06-06 10:47 |
| #13 Out of my way, slimebag. Obviously my manservant Jeeves isn't up to his task, so I fired him. For that I have been elevated to the lofty 91% class. |
| Posted by: Dreadnought 2005-06-06 10:42 |
| #12 I guess I can't associate with you low-lifes any more. Out of my slimebag; I got an 87%. Anyone notice that being a lawyer was far more prestigious than being an engineer or teacher. Guess they didn't talk to anyone in middle America. No bias here. Naaah. |
| Posted by: Dreadnought 2005-06-06 10:40 |
| #11 Well, I could not get in on my current occupation (military) but I could get in on management (retail & engineering) or on my side job as an educator (college level). Average 66% Does this mean that I can piss on 6 out of ten people that I meet? Or should I just raise my nose and sniff at them? Should I lick the boots of those whom I know make more money than I do? That would only be 3 out of ten people . . . I thnk I could live with that . . . NOT. |
| Posted by: Jame_Retief 2005-06-06 10:33 |
| #10 76th percentile. Not having any collidj kinda bumped my score down a bit. ;) |
| Posted by: BH 2005-06-06 10:30 |
| #9 [Buffing hand on lapels.] 84%. I guess I can't associate with you low-lifes any more. Except domingo. He's OK. |
| Posted by: Jackal 2005-06-06 10:21 |
| #8 They dont have a catagory for 'Housewife' either.... Or 'Unemployed'... Or anyone in the Military.... (that I could see...) ......Very interesting... |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-06-06 09:56 |
| #7 The world want's to know. Where does Paris Hilton land on this Twit Meter? |
| Posted by: ed 2005-06-06 09:55 |
| #6 So,are you supposed to take the results of the 4 catgories and average them out? If so this explains why I feel like such an ignorant cracker around here.28%(no catagory for the disabiled) |
| Posted by: raptor 2005-06-06 09:50 |
| #5 Wow! I'm in the 'upper 5th portion! Whooo Hoo!! Does this mean I should expect that invitation from the Kerry's and Kennedys any day now? Only people like the NYT would rate someone on 'occupation', 'education', 'income' and 'wealth' - how Elitist... I'm suprised there isn't a 'race' column -- but then that would be to obvious wouldn't it... Sorry but I rate people on a little thing called 'character'. I know some mechanics who are real decent people who I would like to hang around with and some collage grads and lawyers who are pure elitist assholes. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-06-06 09:27 |
| #4 To sum it up: Todays lead story appears to be about the tug of war of the new hyper rich vs. the old money rich on Nantucket. How New York Timesian! |
| Posted by: tu3031 2005-06-06 09:09 |
| #3 83% here. I new that college edamucation would pay off some day! Now do I get my membership into the Society of People Who Are Unfairly Privileged? Cause I'm tried of having to work for what I have... |
| Posted by: domingo 2005-06-06 09:08 |
| #2 F@#king liberals! Isn't this kind of thing exactly what they say is wrong with the country? I thought class struggle was central to their philosophy of socialistic nirvana. If they don't even know what they want, how the hell are we supposed to jump to it every time they whistle? |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2005-06-06 08:09 |
| #1 58 percentile here. |
| Posted by: badanov 2005-06-06 08:03 |