So it’s been a few months , is COVID a bunch of bologna or still think it’s a real threat?

[cola]

While I think the whole post was great, I want to focus on this point. A strong argument can be made that the economic devastation is worse than the sickness. 30 million+ are unemployed and will be out of work for a while. The biggest sufferers are going to be the white collar workers who were laid off, since it's more difficult to get a white collar job. The low wage service sector employees will more easily replace income, though they were suffer too. They'll be back at work first. No one is hiring for white collar positions right now, and the number of applicants per white collar position is ridiculously high despite the narrative that white collar people aren't getting laid off as much as the leisure and hospitality service sector. Let's also mention all the pay cuts in white collar work. New business initiatives are halted as well, which might lead to further white collar layoffs.

Since 2008, I've noticed that executive management tends to freeze up in difficult positions. Executive management tends to lay off, cut salary, and then look to the government for assistance. I've not observed a lot of great business leadership during this time.

Never been happier to be a blue collar type of guy..

 

[SW15]

Never been happier to be a blue collar type of guy..

You should feel that way. More men should go in a blue collar direction and avoid bachelor's/master's/doctorate degrees and white collar work. Going into the trades via some sort of trade school certification is the way to go.

 

[cola]

You should feel that way. More men should go in a blue collar direction and avoid BA/BS degrees and white collar work. Going into the trades via some sort of trade school certification is the way to go.

Master plumbers can make 80-90 grand a year and probably another 20,000 tax free doing side work for friends and neighbors .. I advise anyone 18-19 to consider that route.

 

[SW15]

Master plumbers can make 80-90 grand a year and probably another 20,000 tax free doing side work for friends and neighbors .. I advise anyone 18-19 to consider that route.

Plumbing breaks regardless of economic cycles. I wish I had done that.

 

[cola]

Plumbing breaks regardless of economic cycles. I wish I had done that.

**** man, I’m 31 in a few weeks and if apprentice plumbers didn’t only make 12 bucks an hour I’d do it now.
With car payment, rent and food it’s no way I could make 12 bucks an hour work for 2 years, but I could’ve when I was 18. Wish I could hop in a time machine and be a 18 again.

 

[Spaz]

**** man, I’m 31 in a few weeks and if apprentice plumbers didn’t only make 12 bucks an hour I’d do it now.
With car payment, rent and food it’s no way I could make 12 bucks an hour work for 2 years, but I could’ve when I was 18. Wish I could hop in a time machine and be a 18 again.

You can partake in tradesman ship as a means to survive only in ur 20's, this is while a man is in process of upgrading himself, its still far better to get a masters or at the very least a degree, doesn't matter from which university.

It's to open doors that might otherwise be closed even if you are more then capable.

 

[EyeBRollin]

I'm going to go ahead and jump into this thread without reading the 6 pages already:

Covid is a joke. The democrats got a taste of power once they told everyone what to do, and now they don't want to let it up. Social distancing and face masks are literally propaganda as far as I am concerned because it's pretty much been proven that:

1) masks do nothing

2) asymptomatic people CANNOT spread it, contrary to what we've been told since day 1

3) vitamin-D levels are directly correlated with risk of symptoms, which is why the black community has been hit so hard (they need more sunlight than whites to produce vitamin D, but they're all shut inside)

4) the quarantine was so half assed that it didn't accomplish a damn thing except making everyone more susceptible to getting sick from their weakened immune status (eating like ****, no exercise, no sunlight, etc)

5) the effects on the economy will prove to be devastating and does not justify the small amount of lives it saved. the death toll from the increased rates of poverty alone will far exceed the number of covid deaths.

6) far more people with non-covid medical needs have died from lack of access to medical services than actual covid patients, due to the artifically inflated demand for covid treatment.

7) covid 19 is about 1.5-2x more deadly than the flu. The death rate, from what I can gather is in fact around .01% or less.

8) medical industries are fudging the numbers to include just about anything as a "covid death" for instance, if you attempt suicide and die while being treated at ICU, your death certificate will say it was a covid death if there was even a possibility that you contracted it while you were in care. this happened to one of my friends coworkers, and it was absolutely appalling.

9) our country increased its debt to china by over 1 trillion for all the stimulus payments

At this point I should mention I am not conspiratorially-minded in the slightest, hell I think Lee Harvey Oswald killed JFK on his own. However, Bret Weinstein (evolutionary biologist, 180IQ, very rational and level headed, also far-leftist) has talked in depth about the origins of the virus and he believes it was created by the chinese government in a lab , and I am inclined to believe it. And if it's true, it's obvious that they were the ones who orchestrated all the propoganda and fear mongering.

This is the most reckless post in the entire thread. Literally every point is wrong. Exhibit A of why the world is shaking their head at the United States right now.

 

[Spaz]

I'm going to go ahead and jump into this thread without reading the 6 pages already:

Covid is a joke. The democrats got a taste of power once they told everyone what to do, and now they don't want to let it up. Social distancing and face masks are literally propaganda as far as I am concerned because it's pretty much been proven that:

1) masks do nothing

2) asymptomatic people CANNOT spread it, contrary to what we've been told since day 1

3) vitamin-D levels are directly correlated with risk of symptoms, which is why the black community has been hit so hard (they need more sunlight than whites to produce vitamin D, but they're all shut inside)

4) the quarantine was so half assed that it didn't accomplish a damn thing except making everyone more susceptible to getting sick from their weakened immune status (eating like ****, no exercise, no sunlight, etc)

5) the effects on the economy will prove to be devastating and does not justify the small amount of lives it saved. the death toll from the increased rates of poverty alone will far exceed the number of covid deaths.

6) far more people with non-covid medical needs have died from lack of access to medical services than actual covid patients, due to the artifically inflated demand for covid treatment.

7) covid 19 is about 1.5-2x more deadly than the flu. The death rate, from what I can gather is in fact around .01% or less.

8) medical industries are fudging the numbers to include just about anything as a "covid death" for instance, if you attempt suicide and die while being treated at ICU, your death certificate will say it was a covid death if there was even a possibility that you contracted it while you were in care. this happened to one of my friends coworkers, and it was absolutely appalling.

9) our country increased its debt to china by over 1 trillion for all the stimulus payments

At this point I should mention I am not conspiratorially-minded in the slightest, hell I think Lee Harvey Oswald killed JFK on his own. However, Bret Weinstein (evolutionary biologist, 180IQ, very rational and level headed, also far-leftist) has talked in depth about the origins of the virus and he believes it was created by the chinese government in a lab , and I am inclined to believe it. And if it's true, it's obvious that they were the ones who orchestrated all the propoganda and fear mongering.

Good, think of covid 19 as fake news and fear mongering.

Go about as per normal pre covid 19.

And then....Peekaboo

 

[cola]

You can partake in tradesman ship as a means to survive only in ur 20's, this is while a man is in process of upgrading himself, its still far better to get a masters or at the very least a degree, doesn't matter from which university.

It's to open doors that might otherwise be closed even if you are more then capable.

Why spend $100,000 getting a masters degree to make six figures when you can make the same six figures in the trades and get paid to learn.. ?

if you want a white collar job by all means get your masters but it’s a stretch to say it’s “far better”..

 

[Spaz]

Why spend $100,000 getting a masters degree to make six figures when you can make the same six figures in the trades and get paid to learn.. ?

if you want a white collar job by all means get your masters but it’s a stretch to say it’s “far better”..

If u r a mechanic who just have a simple certificate, you could work in say Caterpillar or Cummins make good money now BUT it won't be enough to raise ur future kids that includes housing, tuition, holidays, etc.

You'd be stuck as a mechanic if you work in those companies, maybe end up as a foreman, that too has a probability of a mere 10-20%...

However if you take up an engineering degree, the probability of you becoming a workshop/outlet manager rises to 99% and then from there you'd be a sales manager, area manager, country manager, regional manager, director, managing director and who knows even the CEO.

If by now you can't even acknowledge that's "far better"...then enjoy what you sow or didn't sow.

 

[cola]

If u r a mechanic who just have a simple certificate, you could work in say Caterpillar or Cummins make good money now BUT it won't be enough to raise ur future kids that includes housing, tuition, holidays, etc.

You'd be stuck as a mechanic if you work in those companies, maybe a foreman.

However if you take up an engineering degree, the probability of becoming a workshop/outlet manager rises to 99% and then from there you'd be a sales manager, area manager, country manager, regional manager, director, managing director and who knows even the CEO.

If by now you can't even acknowledge that's "far better"...then enjoy what you sow or didn't sow.

What are you even talking about? I said plumber. I didn’t say anything about a mechanic. However, I also could have said electrician or hvac. All these trades by the time you reach masters level have six figure earning potential.
Also, by the time you reach master level your giving instructions to the journeyman, you aren’t turning too many wrenches anymore.

Let’s do math. Johnny goes to school for six years, finishes with a masters degree and come out of school $60,000 in debt. He finds a great job making $60,000 a year after school.
He decides to aggressively pay his student loans while living on his own so he pays $20,000 of his salary towards them for 3 years. He now is making $40,000 a year.

Mike skipped college and went straight to the trades. By 20 years old he was a journeyman plumber making $50,000 a year with no debt.
At 22 when Johnny finished his degree, Mike became a master plumber. Mike makes $90,000 a year with no debt.

Who is off to the better start in life? I have friends with masters degrees who could only dream of making $90,000 a year. There’s no way you can tell me going to school for a masters is as you put it is “far better” than going into the trades..

We haven’t even talked about the earning potential of a master plumber who decided to start his own business.. now we are talking
$200,000 a year easily..

 

[Spaz]

What are you even talking about? I said plumber. I didn’t say anything about a mechanic. However, I also could have said electrician or hvac. All these trades by the time you reach masters level have six figure earning potential.
Also, by the time you reach master level your giving instructions to the journeyman, you aren’t turning too many wrenches anymore.

Let’s do math. Johnny goes to school for six years, finishes with a masters degree and come out of school $60,000 in debt. He finds a great job making $60,000 a year after school.
He decides to aggressively pay his student loans while living in his own so he pays $20,000 of his salary towards them for 3 years. He now is making $40,000 a year.

Mike skipped college and went straight to the trades. By 20 years old he was a journeyman plumber making $50,000 a year with no debt.
At 22 when Johnny finished his degree, Mike became a master plumber. Mike makes $90,000 a year with no debt.

Who is off to the better start in life? I have friends with masters degrees who could only dream of making $90,000 a year. There’s no way you can tell me going to school for a masters is as you put it “far better” than going into the trades..

I'm talking in general and not plumbing per se.

As for ur contention abt debts, a man who doesn't get educated has less debts vs those who does, it's actually an investment, a long term investment, is it a guarantee? No but the potential is there vs those without an education.

As for ur contention abt master class, I have a couple myself, I could work anywhere in the world as a master mechanic, master welder, master electrician but I also have an engineering master degree (Mechatronics), I took it up (Master mechanic) because back then when I was a workshop manager for an international company in Bahrain, I wanted to be even better then my mechanics and business boomed. My reputation grew because I had something no one else had or rarely do. I was offered jobs in Europe. Money was so easy to come by as an expat since everything is free, housing, car, travel, medical...you name it I got it. And all of this when I was around ur age.

I could even hear an engine sound and tell you what model it is, how it's performing without even seeing that engine. I'm that good.

Now I'm a director of a region, my tour is abt to end here and I'm soon going to be posted in another. Maybe I'll finally resign and settle down, concentrate on the businesses I've set up in these region since I'm native to these parts, and all these blessings I've had was thanks to the pursuit of being educated, I'd be delusional to think I'd be here right now without one.

One of my former mechanic, a Swedish, is now Managing Director and CEO for South Africa, because he went to get an online degree in business administration..

 

[Xenom0rph]

Why spend $100,000 getting a masters degree to make six figures when you can make the same six figures in the trades and get paid to learn.. ?

if you want a white collar job by all means get your masters but it’s a stretch to say it’s “far better”..

Because when you have higher education you can make 6 figures sitting in an air conditioned office, drink coffee and watch netflix on your phone while your staff does the work.... and plus, if you work for a large company there's usually a lot of females to interact with throughout the course of the day...

The people who end up with $40k in debt are the ones that went straight to university after high school, which is foolish because universities force freshmens to live in dorms the first 2 years which is a total rip off. The wise choice would be to go to community college the first 2 years to do your general ed and then transfer to university to finish up your last 2 years of upper division.

I come from a blue collar family, so I wouldn't diss blue collar guys, but IMHO, a college education will open doors for you as long as you major in STEM.....

Don't ever major in dumb sh1t like Gender Studies....

 

[EyeBRollin]

Kind of off topic but it is never a waste of money to invest in your own education, especially in STEM. An engineering degree like @Spaz said actually gives you versatility long term. Engineers are always in demand and can work in multiple industries because they are technical problem solvers. The trades are good but to maximize that you should have the technical education to go with it.

 

[Xenom0rph]

Whenever I drive around town and see construction guys working in 110° weather my sympathies goes out to them, especially because my dad also worked construction.

Going to college was the best decision I ever made.

 

[samspade]

The people who end up with $40k in debt are the ones that went straight to university after high school, which is foolish because universities force freshmens to live in dorms the first 2 years which is a total rip off. The wise choice would be to go to community college the first 2 years to do your general ed and then transfer to university to finish up your last 2 years of upper division.

I agree with this. But do schools force you to live in dorms? I remember a friend of mine got off-campus housing her freshman year. She said "I don't want to live in a dorm...I don't like the whole idea of being thrown into a room with a complete stranger for a year." That made sense to me and I realized that dorms might be one of those things people do because that's how it was always done and people don't really think it through. (Plus parents think their kids are safer, but uh, it could be the opposite.)

 

[Xenom0rph]

I agree with this. But do schools force you to live in dorms? I remember a friend of mine got off-campus housing her freshman year. She said "I don't want to live in a dorm...I don't like the whole idea of being thrown into a room with a complete stranger for a year." That made sense to me and I realized that dorms might be one of those things people do because that's how it was always done and people don't really think it through. (Plus parents think their kids are safer, but uh, it could be the opposite.)

I'm in california. All the UC's require freshmens to live in dorms the first year (and also 2nd year I think). I got accepted to all the UC schools right out of high school but decided to go to community college instead because the first 2 years is complete bullsh1t general education like Art, Humanities, Sociology etc.....

I did my general ed and prerequisites for my major at community college and transferred to UCLA. And I didn't live on campus or in the apartments in the surrounding area cause I didn't want to get ripped off. I lived at home with my parents and rode my motorcycle to class everyday.

So I only paid for tuition and books.

People kept telling me "bro, you gotta go all 4 years for the full college experience.....frats, parties, sex, spring break, it's gonna be awesome bro...."

What a load of bs.... I had more fun at community college than at university.

 

[Spaz]

Kind of off topic but it is never a waste of money to invest in your own education, especially in STEM. An engineering degree like @Spaz said actually gives you versatility long term. Engineers are always in demand and can work in multiple industries because they are technical problem solvers. The trades are good but to maximize that you should have the technical education to go with it.

Another point to highlight, men need to understand that people/wife/children don't have stagnant dreams.

For example, in the past ur wife might be happy riding a bicycle with you when you were dating, she might even endure riding pillion on a motorbike for a year or two, but she ain't gonna be happy doing it for years, she'd want a car and maybe later on an MPV.

If a man don't upgrade his education, he's more or less stuck in a certain income ceiling, that by itself is a great disservice to ur family and also to yourself as the leader in that family unit.

For a man, the only time you can stop upgrading urself is when you die. The moment you stop, even at a young age, it's the moment ur "death" starts.

 

[Spaz]

You boys (and those who share similar views) should give urselfs a big pat on ur backs, this graph has to be fake news until covid does a peekaboo in ur own household, oh yes, sure many of ur relatives will survive, but can you guarantee that ur wife, ur kids or even ur parents will 100% survive?

But do not worry, I'm sure they'll believe you when you visit them at the hospital and tell them it's all fake news, it's all Google's or any media's (that you dislike) fault.

Phulease continue with ur fake news narratives and when enough people believe that, that graph will show tremendous improvement in fake news...

 

[samspade]

I'm in california. All the UC's require freshmens to live in dorms the first year (and also 2nd year I think). I got accepted to all the UC schools right out of high school but decided to go to community college instead because the first 2 years is complete bullsh1t general education like Art, Humanities, Sociology etc.....

I did my general ed and prerequisites for my major at community college and transferred to UCLA. And I didn't live on campus or in the apartments in the surrounding area cause I didn't want to get ripped off. I lived at home with my parents and rode my motorcycle to class everyday.

So I only paid for tuition and books.

People kept telling me "bro, you gotta go all 4 years for the full college experience.....frats, parties, sex, spring break, it's gonna be awesome bro...."

What a load of bs.... I had more fun at community college than at university.

If you were riding a motorcycle to class you probably didn't need anyone's help pulling tail, lol.