What Up Everyone,
So I just had the most bizarre experience last night. I am currently a first year analyst at a bank up in Boston, and I was visiting a friend who is also working in the city. There were some other people at his house, a fairly SJW crowd, but they were led by this absolute Social Justice Templar who immediately talked shit and called me out for working in finance, although he knew nothing about what my team does or my job entails. I was obviously not offended at all and after trying to open a dialogue with the kid for a while I just gave up and told him to fuck off. After I ignore him for a while, he takes out his phone and says "I'm gonna start filming this" and I basically threaten him and leave because stuff like that blows up on the internet and I didnt want any bad publicity for my bank (even though I did nothing wrong). Felt like kind of a wimp for not knocking this kid out haha but I guess I can't act like that now that I'm employed and do not want to risk damaging my future. My buddy apologized like a million times after I left and threw the kid out of his house.
So overall, very weird situation. I've obviously seen occupy wall street videos and heard about general sentiment towards bankers, but never actually experienced it. While there is no standard way to deal with this, I was wondering if you guys had any similar experiences?
Thanks!
I mean that specifically has never happened to me but candidly my friend group is pretty homogeneous. I wouldn't be too worried about it though, it sounds like your buddy handled it and all is good with the relationship you actually care about in that situation. People are really weird - most people don't understand that no matter what profession you're in (for the most part) there are good people and bad people and everybody is a cog in the wheel to some extent.
I have an SJW that works on our team in a support role... our company culture is amazing, seniors help people land new jobs, discuss interviewing and career plans, and everyone is very open and accepting of others opinions (honestly makes it that nobody wants to leave even if they land a good job).
Anyways, this person rags on finance, the patriarchy, white privilege, mansplaining, ‘me too’ all day long every day. But they are good at what they do and on the way out so nobody really takes them to task but it’s amazing how much shit they talk about what we do on a daily basis.
This person is very intelligent but didn’t really set out a good path for themselves early on so go stuck in this role. I think if they were in a position to do what we do they’d take it in a second, change their ways and never look back.
I think a lot of the attitudes and opinions of people like this stem from feeling like they have already lost and not seeing opportunity in front of them so they want to tear it down. I completely empathize with that sentiment, but I think they lack the vision on how to turn it around for themselves. If I truly felt like I had no opportunity or hope and my life was set in stone to be a low wage earner with no upward mobility, I’d want to tear it down too. I honestly just feel bad for these people and I’ve offered to help that person map out their career and they were very grateful, though they haven’t taken me up on the offer yet.
This is how I imagine your view on SJWs. Not that I disagree, I just found it funny...Maybe this is my own projection?
"Why don't you get a job? If you're so hungry, why don't you get a job?"
"I lost my job."
"Why? You drinking? Is that why you lost it? Insider trading?...Just joking"
Therein lies the rub. Setting aside the SJW stuff, I've attempted to provided guidance to people who really needed it when I was in a unique position to help. At the end of the day, very few people take advice or advisory, regardless of how successful or unsuccessful they are. Everyone "knows" better than you.
I’ve occasionally gotten shit from time to time, not too often though. Kid is not only a loser, but rude.
You did the right thing though. Beating the shit out of SJWs does nothing. They are already pathetic and will resort to bitch behavior to get back at you.
Kid probably had to leave the party to prep the bull who was hired to gape his chick.
Your last sentence was absolutely brutal hahah
True story - I was in Paris with my GF, having a picnic dinner with her friend and her BF. Dude gave me some shit about being part of evil in society. I told him something about not caring as long as I got paid.
Later on, after he got drunk, he dropped how him and his chick were poly. Which became a convo about him and his chick and another dude. Which became a convo about him blowing the other dude.
Fact papi.
Fucking communists
I always pull out my wallet and yell to the crowd that I am going to buy their silence and proceed to start taking bets on how much it will cost. Usually they just skulk away before it ever gets to actually having to tempt them.
This is my favorite poster and I believe he deserves more recognition. No bullshit internet bananas even for this gold post? fuck guys
I don't give a fuck about fake internet points. So its all good.
I've had this happen a few times (tho I haven't entered the industry yet). One person basically said it was because of "us" that the recession happened. She was just rude so I ignored her. My sister also thinks that finance is basically selling your soul to make money and doesn't help people.
I understand that the vast majority of people are basically ignorant and barely educated, but banking is something most people have a personal experience with.
Do these people not have credit cards? A bank account? Understand that loans buy equipment and eventually provides jobs?
People demonizing an entire industry have the same cognitive power as a cracked out homeless person. And neither register on my radar of having valued opinions.
Yea I try to explain that without banks you really wouldn't have a good quality of life and only some people actually get it. Luckily the people around my family are educated, but the thought about PE is pretty common on how they just take struggling companies fire a bunch of people and then get out.
Most people take for granted everything we have. Our quality of life is incredible by all historical standards because of modern banking, industrialization, capitalism, representative democracy, the university system, and the rule of law. Homo sapiens have been around for about 300,000 years, and for almost the entire time we have lived in grinding poverty. Only in the last 100 years or so have we really taken a huge leap in quality of life, which is due almost entirely to the intellectual innovations of the last 1-2,000 years. But so many people in the West and other parts of the First World take everything we have today as a given, and they are so, so ungrateful for it, and so bitter about perceived injustices. As a history buff, it's truly maddening how ignorant and ungrateful our society is.
My mom started getting so much crap from her friends and neighbors for having a son who works in private equity that she stopped telling them what I do. Always some variation on "oh so he destroys jobs and fires people" or "that's what Mitt Romney did, and he made his fortune stealing from good, hard-working people" or "why doesn't he do something good for society instead."
I don't care one bit about changing their minds, but I feel bad for my mom that she can't share with her social circle what's going on with her family because of the uneducated views society holds about roles in finance.
My mum had a similar problem, but its fine I bought her a new house with double glazing to block out the hate
Sorry for your mom. I’m sure her friends have kids doing amazing shit - sarcasm.
Btw your mom is an angel. My mom would tell them to fuck off and laugh in their face.
Some fucking people honestly
Wow that really pisses me off that they shit talk your mom. In a sad sort of way I understand the ignorance behind trashing people directly in banking/PE/trading etc but to say that to your mom is such complete disrespect. Sorry to hear that
I think the key in dealing with SJW is understanding that you cannot have a rationale discussion with them. Liberalism has morphed into a kind of cult where you have to completely espouse the ideology and never question or debate it, regardless of how little sense it makes.
So when faced with these people, you are left with 2 choices. Either you try to talk to them which inevitably will lead to said SJW calling you an evil al-right nazi fascist puppy killer, regardless of the validity of your arguments. Or you can troll them and pretend to love Trump and to hold views that are right of Ted Cruz. Whatever topic you are discussing, just bring up the most ridiculously conservative position you can think of and you're guaranteed a complete meltdown and some serious fun.
When things get really heated, I personally love to tell them that I promise to take them on a helicopter ride once the revolution comes ;)
You sound like the kind of guy who knows how to enjoy life. 1 SB for you.
Watching them meltdown are some of the best pleasure in life
Never ever engage a SJW/leftist. You will end up feeling yucky after the conversation is over. I always just walk away.
Read this if you want to be able to craft a good argument to shut down clueless lefties who shit on your career:
![https://www.getabstract.com/abstractData/flashFile/finance-and-the-good…] [https://www.getabstract.com/abstractData/flashFile/finance-and-the-good… https://www.getabstract.com/abstractData/flashFile/finance-and-the-good…
jeez, that dude sounds like a grade a douchebag. you did the right thing by walking away. often times people don't want to learn, they've already made up their mind that finance is evil and they're completely unwilling to open their mind. the last thing you want to do is end up on some vlogger's channel saying something in anger.
hope your friend banishes that dude from the friend group, in what universe is that socially acceptable? have people forgotten what manners are? never in a million years would I talk shit to someone I don't know about that. maybe a sports team, but more in jest like "yeah harper's only doing well because the hot air in washington makes the ball go further haha" not shitting on someone's profession.
I'm putting the over/under of # of years until that guy is your starbucks barista at 2.5. I'm taking the under.
Should’ve hand the SJW a ten as a preemptive tip for future starbucks coffees he will fill up.
Honestly though, people are so fucking dumb. If it wasn't for America's beautiful finance system then many companies and technological breakthroughs wouldn't be possible at all.
What they also fail to understand is that without private equity you end up with obese disgusting companies run by fucking idiots which are doomed to fail.
Yeah, you have to restructure companies which isn't a fun process for anyone but it's better for the long-term health of the economy in most cases....
This is honestly why I stopped hanging out with most people and only really hang around people I do business with/run companies with plus family and random bimbos from Tinder.
Your fault - you approached the party like an absolute amateur. There is the Chinese Wall that prevents traders from our coveted intel and then there is Trump's wall which blocks off the SJWs in the back office. Having been shielded from this wall for so long and abstaining from CNN, you forgot the number one rule: As a 1%er it is your duty to spread your wealth with the general populace (please see below for gift ideas which all fit nicely into a Tumi - Alpha 2 Breifcase $449 MSRP).
You're right jamie. I have a long way to come. Thank you for the fantastic gift idea
"If you must know, I provide liquidity"
I've had a few experience like this, but nowhere near the severity. One dude in Vegas basically said commodity trading is the devil and the idea that people make money in this industry are basically the bane of society. I tried to put some counterarguments out there, but since this guy wasn't having any of it I just left. Another was some teacher talking about insurance and I said mine was pretty great... naturally her first comment was that it's only because I work for the evil corporations.
I generally just ignore these people because they honestly don't want to understand finance. You'll have better luck talking to a brick wall.
It's annoying and SJWs (or uninformed people for that matter) will always find I way to talk shit about careers they know nothing about even outside of finance. I get that shit all the time working in pharma. Hate it. In most cases I would also ignore the guy but in this case I would have slapped him. Not beaten him. A back-hand bitch slap. Just so he knows he's a bitch.
Feel your pain dude. I'm payer side and all I hear is how sick people are of increased premiums to pay for our company's c-suite bonuses. When I try to inject some nuance as to why premiums increase I'm met with a swift proverbial "F*** YOU!!" Whatever dude, keep parroting some BS one liner from your favorite political pundit.
I love diving into the weeds with people. The industry isn't perfect but I love discussing the flaws, the future, and the reasons why things are the way they are. Having been in the industry for a bit, though, I've learned people often just want a bad guy they can easily point a finger at. Unfortunately, HC (especially pharma and insurance) and banking tend to people's favorite bad guys :/
100% agree man. And besides wanting someone to blame, they don't (or pretend to) understand how complex the industry is and have 0% desire to inform themselves. They don't need a goddamn PhD but just look up at some of the R&D costs of these clinical trials. "Oh, pharma only cares about making profit" that profit goes to fund the drug that stopped the cancer from ravaging through you. You're welcome.
Exactly! I think its insane how people lose their mind when drug prices go up because they think R&D capital simply grows on trees. I guess "innovation comes for free"
Haha yep. I'm studying petroleum engineering (and currently interning at a big oil company) and some people have been downright nasty about it. Like, you drive to work everyday... your car runs on gas... you realize that your gas has to come from somewhere right? Powering your oversized SUV requires some pretty complicated processes that requires a lot of specialized work. People will disparage careers that have benefits to society that should be immediately obvious. And god forbid they find out I've worked on a frac site.
I feel for people in other careers (like finance) where it's more difficult to try and explain the benefits of the work. I think that with some people, it's not even worth it to try and explain what you do.
I agree, it's not worth taking the time to explain.
'So what do you do?' 'Make more than you'
Absolutely have to throw an SB for the SJTemplar.
Try telling people you're a banker in the healthcare sector, depending on the crowd (I'm in the DMV so the "what do you do for a living" is always the cold open question), I answer something to the effect of, "you know all those evil pharma companies - I'm the guy that gives them the money." Reactions are pretty great, and if they're a good sport about it ill absolutely buy the person a drink.
The same people who care are the same people who think companies like Activis, Purdue and Monsanto are the axis of evil. My response is the same for everyone, as soon as you find a way to literally alleviate the chronic pain of an entire generation of blue collar workers or can feed the entire sub-continent of India, shut-up and move on.
Yikes....but good on you for neutralizing the situation. 99% of the time it's the best way to respond to any attack of that sort.
Jesus, that guy in the passenger's seat is ridiculously handsome.
Lmao you should've just knocked the sucker out
I'm gonna regret not doing so until i die haha. If he ever comes back me and my friend will fuck him up.
Wasn't there a post on Leveraged Sellout a few years ago that described a (fictitious) situation like this absolutely beautifully?
There's always this failed old guy at my gym who knows I work in finance and keeps telling me how I'm a crook and should be in jail lol. Just ignore the moron tho.
They always get salty around 35 when they realize they aren't going anywhere.
Indeed. I would lose all hope and get salty as well with that outlook in live though.
Next time, tell him to get down on his knees and jerk off in his face. Tell him that this is a metaphor of what life will be like for him
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