Did I not understand something correctly here? At first the text says people don't get ahead by education and hard work, and then it lists examples of the (few, of course) example who did get ahead and all of them got ahead by hard work and education?
Of course most people don't get ahead. We are wired to keep the same level of things we know. If we want to study how to get ahead we must study those few who do get ahead, or at least analyze why the ones not getting ahead didn't get or take their chances.
Another point I want to discuss:
I grew up in a village where people also live on the lower social end. Only thanks to my mom I was able to get away from there (education and hard work). And I can say that it's not just all unfair to people who end up in the same low situation as their parents (drugs, alcohol, no job, single parents). In fact teachers, social workers, police officers, old people on the street, the super market cashier,... many people try to support them and give them chances. But many people simply don't take the chances. They can choose the math teacher helping them passing the exam in his spare time without pay (and where I come from teachers already work unpaid overtime in their normal jobs), and they can choose to sit all day at the bus stop, get drunk, use drugs, etc. Many simply choose the second option, because they don't know how to think long term. It's not all unfair just because poor people often stay poor.
Third point:
Assuming my observation is correct, then what can the government do? If people already get chances to work their way up, but they don't take it, what are the options? Force them to not take drugs? Force them to study 6 hours every day? We live in a free country. Hard to convince anybody that this might be a good decision. But if you let people have a free will, to some degree you must accept that people are very lazy.
Of course most people don't get ahead. We are wired to keep the same level of things we know. If we want to study how to get ahead we must study those few who do get ahead, or at least analyze why the ones not getting ahead didn't get or take their chances.
Another point I want to discuss:
I grew up in a village where people also live on the lower social end. Only thanks to my mom I was able to get away from there (education and hard work). And I can say that it's not just all unfair to people who end up in the same low situation as their parents (drugs, alcohol, no job, single parents). In fact teachers, social workers, police officers, old people on the street, the super market cashier,... many people try to support them and give them chances. But many people simply don't take the chances. They can choose the math teacher helping them passing the exam in his spare time without pay (and where I come from teachers already work unpaid overtime in their normal jobs), and they can choose to sit all day at the bus stop, get drunk, use drugs, etc. Many simply choose the second option, because they don't know how to think long term. It's not all unfair just because poor people often stay poor.
Third point:
Assuming my observation is correct, then what can the government do? If people already get chances to work their way up, but they don't take it, what are the options? Force them to not take drugs? Force them to study 6 hours every day? We live in a free country. Hard to convince anybody that this might be a good decision. But if you let people have a free will, to some degree you must accept that people are very lazy.