My neighbor's home is a microcosm of the nation, actually the world. He is a professional with a thirty year history of good work. His wife has a small business she works at several days a week. Their son lives at home. He has just finished law school and is unemployed. He does make some money buying and selling electronics equipment on EBay. They seem content enough but a real evil lurks there: Income inequality. The father makes much more than his wife and infinitely more than his son. And, disturbingly, the family does not seem to notice the immorality.
They all think the dad works too hard but believe he has studied enough, delayed his life enough and works hard enough to deserve what he earns. He appreciates that. The wife is doing what she wants. She has an interesting line of work, stimulating but not demanding, and it is paid commensurately. She has no problem with her return on her work and appreciates the support of her family where she assigns her main responsibility. The son is anxious to get to work, has a number of promising applications in and thinks he will be employed soon. When he is hired he expects to be very busy and to get a low salary initially. He knows he has to pay his dues. His parents are proud of his efforts so far and are hopeful he will be rewarded eventually.
The entire family is blind to the inequity that certainly exists here. More, the father remembers the time early in his career when he worked long hours and received little yet he does not seem to see that period of his life as one of abuse but rather learning. This family clearly in its present and its past is "inequality unaware."
Whether this disorder--or "slumber" if you prefer--is perceptive or cognitive is uncertain. One can only hope that one day all will be clear and they, individually, will awaken, rise up against each other and proclaim what is rightfully theirs.
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