It’s been said that the rise of the tech plutocrats of Silicon Valley (Google, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn) and the simultaneous decline of the American middle class is pushing us toward an economy of the rich and the poor who will earn their daily bread servicing the rich.
SNAP Kitchen, our pretty-well-off Northwest Hills neighborhood’s latest retailer, seems to be a good example of services catering to people who presumably can afford $2 for a deviled egg.
Hey, they’re spicy (Jalepeno, black pepper, etc.)! And cage-free. Whoop-de-do.
SNAP Kitchen (“fresh, healthy take-away”) also sells beef that’s “grass-fed” and produce that’s “conscientiously” picked. Mrs. C. said the latter maybe means they think good thoughts as they snip tomatoes from the vine and pull the carrots from the soil.
(They probably don’t realize that SNAP is the federal acronym for food stamps: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.)
San Francisco (bedroom community of the tech grandees) comes to Austin is what I call it. But the Downton Abbey Economy also works. While it isn’t good for a democracy not to have a middle class, it could be lucrative for the skilled journeyman. And as long as the Abbey keeps it civil, there won’t be any sabotaging of the home heating/AC (the electrical system, appliances and the plumbing) the Abbey doesn’t know how to maintain.
THE TEXAS SCRIBBLER 