this post was submitted on 20 Nov 2025
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Showerthoughts
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A "Showerthought" is a simple term used to describe the thoughts that pop into your head while you're doing everyday things like taking a shower, driving, or just daydreaming. The most popular seem to be lighthearted clever little truths, hidden in daily life.
Here are some examples to inspire your own showerthoughts:
- Both “200” and “160” are 2 minutes in microwave math
- When you’re a kid, you don’t realize you’re also watching your mom and dad grow up.
- More dreams have been destroyed by alarm clocks than anything else
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Because middle class is used wrong in North America.
Poverty class is simple, you don't have enough to live.
Labor class is divided into three;
Low labor, your barely paid enough to scrape by.
Middle labor, your paid enough for your work to live.
High labor, you're paid well for your work. Perhaps you own your own small business.
Middle class, you aren't paid a wage or salary anymore, you're income comes from the things you own. As rich as a politician or nobility but not much political power.
Upper class, in old Europe this would be the nobels. Duke's, Earls, Lords, that type of stuff. In modern north America this would be the ultra rich. You have political power and you own a lot of stuff. This is where most representatives are.
Politician class, former Royal class. You rule, extreme political power and wealth.
Most people in North America think they're in the middle class when really they're in the Labor middle class, it's very different
If you’re going to talk about class society, you might as well use the Marxist terms: proletariat, petit-bourgeoisie, and bourgeoise.
Even well paid doctors are labor class mostly. Because even in the past doctors weren't as well paid as today.
most doctors come from wealthy families. and if you are anything above a PCP, you're making like 300K+ a year, you're not labor class. you're part of the 1%. yeah being a resident and an intern sucks balls, but you're taking a short term low age for a long term massive payoff.
80% of med students come from families making over 200K a year. that's a hard fact.
most of us who grew up in middle/lower class families never even dreamed of being a doctor because we knew it was basically impossible for us without rich parents to help pay the bills for med school.
This is something I want to address. Firstly, youre correct. The vast majority of medical students come from VERY privileged backgrounds and it shows. Hell, applications fees can run from 75 to 300+ bucks a pop and the MCAT itself is almost 400 dollars.
That being said, if youre smart enough to get into med school, you should do it. I grew up about as poor as you could, I graduated early and immediately went into working fulltime. After the dotcom burst I became an EMT then a paramedic and started working 72+ hour weeks to save up for my premed. I was MUCH older than your standard 23 year old med school applicant.
But even if you have a relatively decent job (65k in a low cost of living area), the finances work out to pull the trigger and get your MD. Without doing any self doxxing, I can say a relatively uncompetitive specialty paid more in one year than I made in 5 years as a medic. I took 2 years for premed, a gap year, 4 in med school and 3 for residency. 10 years total. Which I made back in 2 years and thats not including the pay as a resident which was actually a bit higher than medic pay.
Your circumstances might prevent you from being a traditional applicant, and AAMCAS needs to work on the financial gatekeeping. You can absolutely swing going to medical school if you have the desire, will, and capability to though. It will be hard as hell though.
Were you really born in 1944?