General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: This message was self-deleted by its author [View all]leveymg
(36,418 posts)The rewards have been more personal than financial. I was never into it for money, as a result I never really made much.
I'm afraid I am not very obedient and thus not well suited to large bureaucratic organizations. This presents some difficulties for someone who has tried to study a wide variety of them, the people who run them, and how they make decisions, from inside.
What I did come away with from my many jobs is some sort of informed understanding of how the world works, and an understanding that those who make decisions are no better or worse than those who have to carry them out or suffer the consequences. I think it's the inequities of power, reinforced by compartmentalization of information, and seeming lack of choices for most within organizations that make life difficult, not primarily the inequities of material rewards.
That's why, for me, empowerment comes through the patient sifting through information, making sense of things, and a generous sharing out of knowledge. Democracy requires that people have a better understanding and can make better choices. Changing the balance of power, not the personalities of those at the top, seems most important to making a more just world.
f I had to sum up what my job is, it's breaking down the compartments of information that divide and weaken the bargaining position of the majority. I think DU is a good place to carry out and share that work among friends.