I Don't Know How They Scrape By
A few weeks ago Michelle Obama gave the following advice.
Now check out the Obama's 2006 tax returns.
In 2004, before Barack took office in the Senate, Michelle was making $121,910 as vice president of community affairs for the University of Chicago hospital. After Barack was elected, her salary jumped to $316,962 in 2005, almost three times what she made the year before.
I wouldn't mind that kind of raise myself, but I didn't go to either Harvard or Yale.
This means that, for Michelle Obama, giving up those high paying corporate jobs to do work that really matters means taking your six figure salary and tripling it. Making enough that she quit her $51,200 a year job on the board of TreeHouse Foods, because she was just too busy. She gave up $51,200, which is well above the median household income for most Americans in 2004. I'm not ashamed to admit that I don't make that much. Close, but not quite, and she gave up that supplemental income because she was just too busy.
I say all this to say again, yes, there is racism in America. There will always be people that look down on you because of the color of your skin; white or black or whatever. But there has also never been a better time in this country to be any color. Does anyone think that 50 years ago Michelle Obama would have had the opportunity to have a single job that earned over $50,000 a year, let alone give up a side job that paid that much?
Hell no. I'm not saying it was right, I'm merely recognizing the culture as it was. There is no greater time to be an American of any color. Opportunities abound for everyone. Yes, along the way someone may use a racial epitaph to describe you. But as my father has always said, the best revenge is living well.
I'm sure Michelle Obama has faced racism in her life, but instead of enjoying the fact that she lives well, she uses past racism as an excuse to bash America. The country that has allowed the opportunity for her family to become millionaires.
“We left corporate America, which is a lot of what we’re asking young people to do,” she tells the women. “Don’t go into corporate America. You know, become teachers. Work for the community. Be social workers. Be a nurse. Those are the careers that we need, and we’re encouraging our young people to do that. But if you make that choice, as we did, to move out of the money-making industry into the helping industry, then your salaries respond.” Faced with that reality, she adds, “many of our bright stars are going into corporate law or hedge-fund management.”Sounds good enough, doesn't it? I mean, a Harvard and Yale educated lawyer telling young people to give up the high paying, corporate law jobs and do things that "really matter". You know, like she did.
Now check out the Obama's 2006 tax returns.
Barack and Michelle Obama earned close to $1 million in 2006, paid more than $318,000 in taxes and got a $40,000 refund, according to the couple’s tax return released by the Democratic presidential candidate’s campaign on Tuesday.Of course most of that money is due to royalties from Barack's two best selling books. So let's take a closer look at Michelle.
In 2004, before Barack took office in the Senate, Michelle was making $121,910 as vice president of community affairs for the University of Chicago hospital. After Barack was elected, her salary jumped to $316,962 in 2005, almost three times what she made the year before.
I wouldn't mind that kind of raise myself, but I didn't go to either Harvard or Yale.
This means that, for Michelle Obama, giving up those high paying corporate jobs to do work that really matters means taking your six figure salary and tripling it. Making enough that she quit her $51,200 a year job on the board of TreeHouse Foods, because she was just too busy. She gave up $51,200, which is well above the median household income for most Americans in 2004. I'm not ashamed to admit that I don't make that much. Close, but not quite, and she gave up that supplemental income because she was just too busy.
I say all this to say again, yes, there is racism in America. There will always be people that look down on you because of the color of your skin; white or black or whatever. But there has also never been a better time in this country to be any color. Does anyone think that 50 years ago Michelle Obama would have had the opportunity to have a single job that earned over $50,000 a year, let alone give up a side job that paid that much?
Hell no. I'm not saying it was right, I'm merely recognizing the culture as it was. There is no greater time to be an American of any color. Opportunities abound for everyone. Yes, along the way someone may use a racial epitaph to describe you. But as my father has always said, the best revenge is living well.
I'm sure Michelle Obama has faced racism in her life, but instead of enjoying the fact that she lives well, she uses past racism as an excuse to bash America. The country that has allowed the opportunity for her family to become millionaires.
Labels: presidential politics, race relations
