Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Brave new Bank

I remember in high school reading Brave New World by Aldous Huxley and thinking about how perhaps the setting wasn't to far off from reality. If you haven't read the book quick synopsis to catch you up;
Utopian world, everything is controlled by the makers and there are several levels of society, much like the Indian caste system.
High ups, pretty, smart, perfect, mature early, have lots of sex and enjoy life and drugs and such.
Mediums not as pretty not as smart but happy to be where they are.
Lows, created to be happy with shiny objects and round things, clean up the shit of the higher ups but are created to be so dumb and malleable that they are happy doing what they do.
A new entity is introduced into said utopian society, a man created from natural birth not cloning and splicing, and causes mass havoc essentially going insane and tipping the scales left and right. All is not perfect and those with brains realize it never was.

Its a good book, not intense or anything but probably better then the standard crap one reads on the beach. That's not what really matters to me here, this post is about a dystopia, a society of a completely different order, or if you really think about it perhaps one in the same.

The large international bank I work for is a foreign company, as such we have out own little caste system of its own. There are the French who work in France and oh what a glorious time they have. Smart and beautiful they take six weeks off in late summer and completely shut down operations leaving us to come to work more for show then anything else. We can't exactly make our own decisions here. Not the pleebs, quick someone give us something round and shiny to keep us occupied for six weeks while those that command enjoy Eurotrash vacations in Ibiza, or those with class summer at the Riviera.

The middle class in our twisted caste system would be those French sent here to prove themselves in exile. For four or so years they must sit amongst the low caste telling us what to do and clenching their teeth at our brashness and manners. We test their patience and for four miserable years they must work around us proving themselves to the higher class that they too are worthy of such luxurious lifestyles. The poor middle class knowing the somewhere in their future lies better days. The flip side of this middle class are the high Americans, working for nothing because they will never move up in the ranks. Their salaries are fat and their benefits good but mobility simply doesn't exist. They stay hoping that the American above them will quit for greener pastures, retire to live off their savings or even die simply so they can fill a new job with the only new thing being their title. The name changes but the song remains the same.

There are the low class. We are not as happy as those in the novel I mentioned, because we have an idea that no matter how hard we work we will never be truly fulfilled. Sitting in the office staring at the older faces straining eyes to focus on monitors, it's not exactly the life I want to live. I'm not very cooperate I never was, there was a five year span as a child when I wanted to be a lawyer but a few conversations with friends in law school or with positions as Junior associates scared the crap outta me real quick. I accept my role and play with my shiny objects plotting my escape as each day passes. I will never learn to love my position as those around me have resigned themselves to do. Not that they willingly do so, but years and years of watching your friends ride the booms and busts makes those with responsibility appreciate that which is reliable, and you damn near have to fellate you co-worker in front of your boss to get the axe.

Our outside factors, those of "natural birth" who throw the entire system into flux are those who are French but have no light at the end of their tunnel. These individuals are not expatriates. They will not be sent back to their home land with fanfare and a brassy new title. No these French must work and live like Americans, knowing that they will never get the glory that their friends and co-workers eventually will. But they are still French and they still have one leg up on us pleebs. Two such ladies have gone far out of their way to make my life hell. Nasty emails, underhanded behind the back plotting. Making sure that all know when I have made a mistake but working hard to cover up that which I have done well. They spite me because I am not like them. I am American and therefore have just a bit less power then them. But I have my youth and a future that does not involve this company. I'll stick around to finish what a started and I shall soon see one get axed for complete incompetence, the other, well I'll just wait for her to go insane and throw our little society into tailspin.

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

nice, cozy place you got here :)..

3:20 AM  

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