Bah, "virtue signaling" accusations are such a toxic thought-terminating cliche :/

Sometimes people worry that they are a little broken for not feeling compassion or empathy for others, and one way to feel better is to decide that anyone who does feel empathy is a liar engaged in virtue signaling. "It's not that I am wrong for not caring for the downtrodden, it's that neither of us cares, but I am honest about it and you are a liar."

Yeah, I find claiming "virtue signaling" to be a kind of virtue signaling in itself.

That's quite the either/or.

I'm with them. "Earned" is really the big question. If I feel I earned my pay, and then I see someone else who's working harder and getting paid much less, it follows that I must also feel that they are receiving less than they have earned.

This assumes that pay is correlated to how hard you work, which it isn't and never has been.

it does not assume that pay is or ever was correlated to how hard you work. it suggests that maybe it should be.

well, this is sort of the point of the cognitive dissonance isn't it?

clearly my labor is valued at the value it produces, and i will continue to maximize the income and comfort of my family. is it virtue signaling to notice that my siblings literally work more hours than me and tolerate conditions i would not tolerate?

i don't know. i continue to push them towards tech jobs. they continue to think they are "not smart enough for it", which is an insane position.