Neal Gabler was probably a poster on CC years ago. He has come down with College Confidential Middle Class Disease.
College Confidential Middle Class Disease is a disease posters have when they live in a $2 million dollar house and think they are middle class.
@musicamusica I’ve been listening to him on “On Point.” I’m not very impressed. In my opinion he sounds arrogant, dismissive, and is only telling the part of the story that suits the narrative. For example, he won’t accept any criticism on the amounts he spent for his daughters to go to Harvard and Emory, saying only that every child has the right to an education.
To me, it is yet another window into why a particular presidential candidate is getting so much support. Gabler is bitter, but he is not sure at whom, or why.
Hey, lots of people do this (including me). It’s a great way of avoiding inheritance/gift tax if the grandparents have a lot of assets. Of course, it’s a different story if the grandparents would have to sacrifice to do this.
No, kid attended Stanford not Harvard per his article, but similar issue.
Sorry, @hunt I was to hasty. Obviously some families are in that position to help and that’s great.
^^Sorry. Apparently Stanford, then a Rhodes Scholarship, then Harvard Medical School. Other child went to Emory, and then UT for a master’s.
Oh, didn’t know Harvard Med School. Sounds like s bright kid. Hopefully kid has some financial literacy and can help support folks who may not have retirement assets.
If she becomes a surgeon, maybe they’re set. O:-)
Ironically, she is probably bright enough that she could have gone to any number of top 50 LACs on full, or near-full merit scholarship. Instead, Gabler calls his daughters’ colleges “extortionists.”
Investing in the daughter was a good investment.
Thanks for the play by play.
No discussion about the house?
Both kids seem bright and well-educated – Harvard Med School for one and a MSW for the other, who served in Americorps before starting her career as a therapist for children.
And Mr. Gabler is not some “TV writer” (not that there’s anything wrong with being a TV writer.) He has written screenplays, but mostly he writes articles and books, primarily biographies. They are well-received by critics (as in “nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award” and “named a non-fiction book of the year”) but apparently they don’t sell so well.
He also teaches, edits, and contributes on Fox News (!). Oh, the wonders of Google…
^^Just the tired line that there are “two” Hampton demographics. He is a year-rounder rather than one of the rich who fly in from California or NYC for the summer. Yawn.
@scout59 Yes the wonders of Google! You would think that a professional biographer would know better than to falsely portray himself as a struggling member of the financially squeezed middle class.
:(( poor poor Gabler. Well I’m off to make money.
@musicamusica Yes! In the Walt Disney book he goes into great detail about how Disney nearly lost his studio several times, due to circumstances variously within or outside of his control. At one point Bank of America actually took the studio over. He was always hoping that his next film would put them back on solid financial footing.
A great cautionary tale. NG should go back and read what he wrote!
Why am I supposed to feel sorry for him?
My H is a state employee and I don’t work and I just had to come up with $417 to fix my dryer. All I needed to do to come up with the money was to write a check from my checking account. I didn’t need to call my 22 year old - (who we paid for his college) to lend me the money.
The sad thing is that a well constructed article (not talking about writing quality but more about content) could have led to a dialogue about the shrinking middle class, what has caused it, and ways to fix it. That would have meant an article with anecdotes of true middle class families and their hardships. By focusing on his own story, which I’d argue doesn’t fit the title and the promised theme of the article, we are talking about Gabler, and rightly so based on the narrative told.
@scout59’s original post stated “I hope the thread doesn’t devolve into righteous indignation about some of his poor financial choices and/or one of those holier-than-thou “this is how I scrimp and save” conversations” but due to the way the article is written, this is exactly what the article deserves.
To me the article is a disservice to the issue it attempted to discuss. I haven’t listened to NPR’s “On Point” interview yet but it seems like a lot of the talk there is also focused on specifics of Gabler’s lifestyle and choices, as have the articles (Slate, Time) about the article. If his goal was to stir up debate and dialogue about middle class America, I’m not sure he’s been successful. If his goal was to line his pocket and get his name out there, he’s having his 15 minutes of fame. Let’s see if he parlays that 15 minutes into something longer lasting. I guess its a shame that our society will give you more attention for airing your financial dirty laundry than for writing what are seen as well regarded and well researched books.
well, you know, some people are good with money and some aren’t, no matter their level of income. As someone who is good with money, I can’t fathom frittering it away and not having a safety net or retirement, etc. We’ve all had friends who it seems doesn’t have a clue and as the old saying goes they seem to believe money grows on trees.
It would be better to have an economist or sociologist or other expert talking about the squeezing of the eroding and middle class. Anecdotes only go so far, IMHO.
Several people near and dear to me dropped dead unexpectedly in their sixties. I’m making every day count now.
One grandfather and my mother lived more than a decade as incapacitated invalids. My husband and I have a deal we aren’t ending up like that. Our kids know that.
I am not buying long term care insurance or moving to assisted living. I am dying in my backyard. I am not planning to live forever, but I’m living well while I’m around and not worrying about the future.
I’m lucky lucky lucky. Money did pretty much grow on trees for me. I’m not worrying about any rainy days.
-main difference between me and the author is luck-
@katliamom - Your second paragraph is pretty much S1’s life right now,although he was fortunate enough to get the job right out of college.