Born on Third Base Thoughts & Reaction

After reading Part One of Born on Third Base I definitely have some thoughts. The first chapter right off the bat was thought-provoking for me. I appreciate that the author, Chuck Collins, recognizes his privilege. I think one of American society’s largest issues is that the wealthy don’t acknowledge or see their own privilege. However, I’m not sure if I necessarily agree with his decision to give away his money/trust fund. I, like the many people he polled at the beginning of the chapter, want to eventually acquire wealth. For me, it’s not so I can have extravagant shopping sprees but instead, I want to in a position where I can give my children a better childhood and life than I had. Also, I’m not necessarily saying that my childhood was bad, I just want to provide for my family with my hard-earned money and I hope that my family’s future generations would like to do the same. Although I plan to put money aside for my children, I still have the expectation that they grow up hard workers understanding the value of a dollar and recognizing whatever privileges they may have. I don’t deny that Chuck Collins’ decision to give his away his trust fund was both admirable and inspirational. I just believe that his trust fund is the result of someone’s hard work and although it isn’t necessarily his he still could’ve grown up and earned his own money while saving his trust fund.

Lastly, I just want to add that I found the first chapter extremely intriguing, Collins certainly grabbed my attention.

The beginning of the second chapter honestly made me question if I was naïve. Reading Steve’s reaction (a gentleman from an anecdote in the chapter) and learning that he was surprised by Collins’ claims that the members of the 1% care about the working class was genuinely surprising to me. I personally feel like a good number of the 1% know that their wealth is not “the norm” and I would hope that they care about members of the working class. I guess I just feel like if I were to ever (by some grace) move into the 1%, I wouldn’t forget about those who aren’t in my position. This within itself is thinking beyond the bubble of socio-economic privilege that Collins talks about in chapter one and where the system can change. Again, I admire and adore that Collins is so aware of his privilege but after reading Part One of his book, I’m beginning to see that he’s an anomaly, unfortunately. Therefore, I appreciate his call for change and push for action that he presents in chapter two and throughout the first part of the book.

The third chapter, “Cracking Hearts Open”, was a good read as well. I mostly agreed with the argument that he presented and the portion of the chapter with Hank’s anecdote stood out to me. I found Hank’s experience absolutely heartwarming, I love the idea that he went to Kenya for one venture but left the country with a new passion and admiration. However, at the end of the chapter’s section, Collins reports that Hank emphasized that everyone must go to a foreign country so that the see poverty and place their privilege into perspective. Considering his words, I don’t disagree with his belief in the power of visiting a foreign country, particularly a third-world country, and that it can place things into perspective for many Americans, i.e. our system of wealth and class. On the contrary, though, I also believe that an individual can easily have an opportunity to consider some of the exact same things while staying right here in the United States. I actually think having this experience would be a bit more meaningful. With this, the 1% can not only empathize with what they see but feel inspired and empowered to change it as well.

I’m interested in learning what else Collins discusses in the book and how he develops his ideas and arguments. Personally, after reading the beginning of the book, I think his ideas are moving and inspirational but slightly overambitious. I believe that most people in the 99% are interested in acquiring more wealth. Money rules this country, I think it’s important to acknowledge this just like it’s critical to recognize your own individual privilege.