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This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

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Re: This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

#31

Post by duzoajcgk »

kec wrote: post #28
duzoajcgk wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course, discretionary income and salary are not the same thing. If you are a developer in the valley paying to live in Palo Alto, driving a BMW, etc. you too could choose to have a lot more discretionary income.

$60k is more than 88% of Americans make in total income. Having that for discretionary spending would place you well within the top 1-2% of Americans, regardless of how much or how little your living expenses are.

Sure, you're right about the average American. I'm pretty sure most people in this discussion are taking about the perspective of someone who works in the tech industry in the bay area since that's what the article is about.

Re: This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

#33

Post by pfarnsworth »

twblalock wrote: post #7
wavefunction wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nannys? Going to fancy restaurants hoping to see venture capitalists? Most people your age do not by any means conduct themselves like this, nor could they if they wanted to. Their "nanny" is their sister or mother or mother in law or a neighbor. They don't go to a fancy restaurant because they don't have the money for both the fancy restaurant and a baby-sitter. They're a two income-family forever, not until stock o…

Let me put it this way: I have lived in Silicon Valley my entire life (and I'm not that young), and the only person I've ever met who was raised by a nanny was a rich kid who went to my high school. I've never met anyone who hired a nanny, except that kid's parents. But maybe that's because I don't live in Atherton.

And let me put it this way: Every working couple except for one that I know with a kid has hired a nanny for at least some portion of the time, including myself.

Re: This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

#34

Post by kec »

duzoajcgk wrote: post #31
kec wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$60k is more than 88% of Americans make in total income. Having that for discretionary spending would place you well within the top 1-2% of Americans, regardless of how much or how little your living expenses are.

Sure, you're right about the average American. I'm pretty sure most people in this discussion are taking about the perspective of someone who works in the tech industry in the bay area since that's what the article is about.

Right. Talking about that kind of money as merely "decently high" is only a slightly different kind of bubble as the one this medium post is satirizing.

Re: This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

#35

Post by ernestbro »

pfarnsworth wrote: post #33
twblalock wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Let me put it this way: I have lived in Silicon Valley my entire life (and I'm not that young), and the only person I've ever met who was raised by a nanny was a rich kid who went to my high school. I've never met anyone who hired a nanny, except that kid's parents. But maybe that's because I don't live in Atherton.

And let me put it this way: Every working couple except for one that I know with a kid has hired a nanny for at least some portion of the time, including myself.

Nanny != babysitter

Re: This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

#36

Post by onlyrealcuzzo »

kec wrote: post #28
duzoajcgk wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course, discretionary income and salary are not the same thing. If you are a developer in the valley paying to live in Palo Alto, driving a BMW, etc. you too could choose to have a lot more discretionary income.

$60k is more than 88% of Americans make in total income. Having that for discretionary spending would place you well within the top 1-2% of Americans, regardless of how much or how little your living expenses are.

The top 1% of earners make $450k/year [1].

Although they obviously spend a lot [2], at some point discretionary income gets pretty blurry. I'd hope any reasonable society would consider they have a lot more than $60k at their discretion, though. I make about a third of that, putting me just barely in the top 10%, and have more than $60k at my discretion.

Wealth inequality is pretty insane in this country.

[1] http://money.cnn.com/calculator/pf/income-rank/

[2] https://douggollan.com/2015/05/02/how-do-the-super-rich-spen...

Re: This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

#37

Post by twblalock »

pfarnsworth wrote: post #33
twblalock wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Let me put it this way: I have lived in Silicon Valley my entire life (and I'm not that young), and the only person I've ever met who was raised by a nanny was a rich kid who went to my high school. I've never met anyone who hired a nanny, except that kid's parents. But maybe that's because I don't live in Atherton.

And let me put it this way: Every working couple except for one that I know with a kid has hired a nanny for at least some portion of the time, including myself.

A nanny is not a part-time worker. That is a babysitter. A nanny lives with the family.

Re: This Is Your Life in Silicon Valley

#39

Post by raverbashing »

quantumhobbit wrote: post #3

Cut all the prices in half and replace startup stupidity with enterprises-trying-to-act-like-startups stupidity and you have most people's lives outside of Silicon Valley. Not to make it generational but this feels like how most people my age live anywhere.

Also make your logo have your name in all lower case now. It's hip
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