Morals vs. Salary

When you're a little kid, people tell you to do lots of things that will help you when you grow up -- get an education, be nice to others, be responsible, be respectful and considerate, etc. While it's true that there is a correlation between education and salary, I'm pretty sure that the rest of the "advice" we're given is a load of bullcrap our parents and teachers feed us so that we'll behave better.

Now, I'm a generally moral person, so I think that everyone should be well-mannered simply because it is the right thing to do. If we were all well-mannered, the world would just... run more smoothly. But try explaining that to a kid.

So, what happens? Well, often times you get kids who don't buy the whole "you should be civil to one another because it will help you when you grow up" argument and act like barbarians, or you get kids who do buy the argument but find that it's too much trouble fighting the barbarians, who will eventually end up in (undeserved) power anyway.

There are a few who have morals, and end up maintaining their morals throughout their lives, even when they grow up and discover that in fact, their parents and teachers lied to them and society doesn't really value morals much at all. These people usually get paid very little (see graph below).