I will summarize real quick. "Rich" and "Poor" are 2 variable of millions - And no matter how many variables you address you cannot escape one simple fact about "who gets ahead" - "If its important to you, you will find a way, if it is not, you will find an excuse."
> no matter how many variables you address you cannot escape one simple fact about "who gets ahead" - "If its important to you, you will find a way, if it is not, you will find an excuse."
Do you have evidence for that? All the evidence I read, including the research discussed in this HN post, says that it depends heavily on where you start, including factors such as family income.
Are you saying that children born into poor families or who face other such disadvantages achieve less because they have less willpower than children born into wealthier families? If so, perhaps we should look at the relationship between family income and willpower.
This is a good way to think on an individual level: ie. taking control of one's own destiny, but it's not adequate on a statistical/societal level. We know for a fact that there are number of correlating factors to success beyond an individual's ambition/discipline/chutzpah. If we ignore this as a society and the rich people from advantaged backgrounds (ie. the majority) continue to pat themselves on the back for their work ethic, then the growing divide between rich and poor will accelerate and destabilize the very status quo which the self-satisfied rich depend on to maintain their wealth and privilege.
