What TikTok’s obsession with nepotism babies says about class

Many young people concerned with burnout don’t have kids. But their motivations are an extension of the same impulse behind concerted parenting—they, too, feel like participants in a pseudo-meritocratic rat race, and they’re terrified of losing status, class, or future income. Young YouTube stars work to exhaustion to meet the expectations of an al... See more

TikTok feels like such a hit to me because it’s nailed the dynamic between online scarcity and online abundance really well. It is a gift culture hybrid model: the status economy of TikTok runs on what you’re owed, and what you’ve given away. But your ability to give something valuable away in the first place often falls back on scarcity and flex c... See more

Of course the game is rigged. Even many enthusiastic capitalists, these days, will concede that a lot of people are born on third base, that preexisting familial advantage can play a huge role in monetary success and success in any given field. Of course chance influences everything we do within our various systems of achievement. (I know someone w... See more