How capitalism stole our lives.

We grew up learning that capitalism is the only system that offers freedom, opportunity, and democracy. Rather, our lives are stolen by the very system we are told is supposed to better it.

Capitalism, in reality, lacks the pillars that we are taught to love about it. Freedom is a political term used to justify imperialism, the only opportunities you get under capitalism are work or starve, and democracy is only democratic in name. Capitalism promises a lot but delivers very little.

Capitalism has worked its way into every aspect of our lives making us think that working a 9–5 for scraps will set us free.

In regards to Gen.Z especially, we’ve grown up not knowing about any other option than neoliberal late capitalism. We know other options through history but not through practice.

The loss of the major opponent to capitalism in the 20th century, the Soviet Union, has turned capitalism rogue. We are in a sort of hyper normal state. We know what’s wrong with the system but we have to play along with the façade.

We have to play into this rogue state to survive. In order to stay afloat we have to be as sinister as those on top. In doing so, we’re stuck chasing a dream of fortune that we’ll never achieve.

Instead of the authoritarianism of the 20th century, modern day late capitalism has a slippery totalitarian nature to it. We’re stuck under the boot of image in late capitalism, we falsely present ourselves in a better light for social capital.

The commodification of our lives has left us with things like “sleep streams,” where people stream themselves sleeping on platforms like Twitch in front of an audience for views.

We allowed capital to infect our necessities in life. The viewers of sleep streams dictate how the person’s night goes, whether they allow them to sleep peacefully or if their night is going to be hell through the donation system on Twitch.

People are forced to choose whether they can sleep or earn money. Sacrifice your self for money or sacrifice your wallet.

Sleep streams are an example of the dehumanizing nature of late capitalism. We’ve become an avatar in our own lives.

Leisure has become the same as work. Sleep, a necessity, has become commodified into ways where we can get paid to set up a camera by our bed.

This commodification of our lives has devoid us of life, we don’t live life we live to seek profit. We turn our everyday into an image to be observed and consumed.

We’re taught that systems like that of the USSR makes everyone into a grey blob. Where there’s no individual freedom. But when this individuality turns into a means to make a dollar then you as well are a grey blob.

We can’t see a way to get out of the ideology that’s grown around us. Capitalism twists itself to make sure that all is under its grip, it finds ways to ensure that everything is about the almighty dollar.

Capitalism has stripped life from life, we’re stuck acting like everything is fine when the whole structure is collapsing. It’s stripped us of unique thought. It’s easier to imagine the end of all life itself than it is to imagine the end of capitalism.

Hustle culture.

We are told that we have a meritocracy, anyone can create an empire and become rich and wealthy at their own liberty. The American dream, it’s but a carrot on a stick, we’re stuck chasing it.

Hustle culture is a phenomena that has been accepted and normalized by our society because we’re told that the more we work the more free we’ll become.

This mindset is boasted on instagram pages with entrepreneurial motivational quotes over a picture of a lion. We’re told that self sacrifice is a good thing as long as you’re making money.

In an increasingly work focused society, relaxation is seen as lazy.

At times, people are forced to adopt this lifestyle. Pay isn’t enough at some jobs to support a family and they’re forced into the gig economy.

Life equals work and work equals success in this hustle culture. People like Gary Vaynerchuk and other enforcers of hustle culture promote this way of life that idolizes constant work over living life.

It’s a desire for excess with no real reward other than bragging rights. You can make all the money in the world but you’ll be losing your life in the process.

Hustle culture gives you the false impression that capitalism is beneficial to your individuality. But are you really individual if you’re just a number within a system that seeks to profit off of your time?

What capitalism has done through this frame of hustling, has made us thirst for excess. An excess of work that we think is pleasurable.

We’ve been lied into working more for the idea of freedom. We’ve been berated by stories of so-called “self made” billionaires. What these stories leave out are the fact that these billionaires were always in a position in society that’s far higher than those who believe the myth of hustling to make it.

Jeff Bezos’ parents gave him $300,000 to start Amazon, Elon Musk had an emerald mine behind him, Kylie Jenner grew up in a wealthy family on a reality TV-show, plus her sister’s sex tape.

You’re either born with the opportunity to rise up the pillars of society or you’re born as a part of the 99 per cent. The higher ups present themselves as humble and lie about how they made it. A way to inspire the impressionable, a way to add more cogs to the machine.

Instead of feeling inspired by these tall tales of unlikely riches, we should take a wider look at what the goal of a society of hustlers is. Is it truly freeing? Or is it another way to capitalize off of one’s free time?

What we do know when looking at hustle culture and late capitalism is that the American Dream is only real when you’re sleeping.