isn't it all about if all the hideously rich and/or famous can have access to the same perks? Even if I could rub shoulders with Astors and Afflecks if I made a million -- I'm pretty much in the no-money class for the rest of my life.

Well, yes, except in rare cases. There was a really interesting Sunday Times Magazine article some 5 years ago (I clipped it) about an investor math whiz who lied his way into society and embezzled from his clients. He got caught, but the article ended up being about all those different people who have bamboozled their way into the company they can't enter legitimately -- from that kid who pretended he was Sidney Poitier's son to Jay Gatsby. Sometimes, it was about lying that you have money; sometimes it was about lying about where the money came from.

Maria has a good point about connections, too. Being the classmate of so-and-so from The Right School can get a foot in the door for, e.g., fast-track executive jobs. And while many people at The Right School know each other (or their parents know each other) before they arrive, that's not consistently so (witness yours truly).

Money will eventually fall into said person's lap, whether through an advantageous marriage or other means, because of the people surrounding him/her.

I don't know. I brushed shoulders with millionaires for years, and none of it rubbed off. No one married me, no one bought me more than dinner (admittedly lovely dinner), I didn't reap anything other than the occasional nice vacation, being able to drive lovely cars every now and again, and a fair amount of disdain or inconvenience because I wasn't able to even remotely pay my own way.

So I must disagree.

My share of ita's bank account, if I am a creator, is reduced by a sum equal to Netflix's overhead. Direct digital (PPV) has a lower overhead. I win.

If I was a entertainment producer/creator, that is. Tom Cruise not withstanding.

Can anyone here name a debutante from last season? Who wasn't kin? Odds are greater that your grandmother could have.

I can't. But odds are, neither of my grandmothers could have, either. Both were dirt poor farmers' daughters who were too busy clawing their way up to the lower middle class to care about the age of anyone's money.

My share of ita's bank account, if I am a creator, is reduced by a sum equal to Netflix's overhead. Direct digital (PPV) has a lower overhead. I win.

Do you have any numbers to back that up? Because Time Warner may have negotiated a significantly more aggressive contract with the creator, with much less margin from them.

I don't know. I brushed shoulders with millionaires for years, and none of it rubbed off. No one married me, no one bought me more than dinner (admittedly lovely dinner), I didn't reap anything other than the occasional nice vacation, being able to drive lovely cars every now and again, and a fair amount of disdain or inconvenience because I wasn't able to even remotely pay my own way.

So I must disagree.

Were you trying to get "in" ita?

My share of ita's bank account, if I am a creator, is reduced by a sum equal to Netflix's overhead. Direct digital (PPV) has a lower overhead. I win.

My overhead doesn't affect the price I pay for something. It affects the price I can pay for something. There's no reason for me to pay more for something than a person is willing to charge just because I can afford it better.

The higher the barrier to access, the smaller the likely distribution, one would think as well....

I should just be happy that no one at work is bothering me, right? shrift, I am holding you up as my "there but for the grace of god" work example.

Ha! Well, it could be worse. I could be salaried, or working on a chain gang.

wrt to the money/class thing - pretty clear that there are not absolutes. trends - sure and higher percentages that x will happen - sure.