Workers Over Billionaires
Labor Day is a holiday for workers. Most people see it as a time for barbecues, a cold drink, maybe a parade. But the truth is much harder. Labor Day started in pain, fights, and even blood.
A long time ago, in the late 1800s, workers in cities like Chicago and New York had to work very long hours—12, 14, even 16 hours a day. Even kids worked in factories. They made only a little money, while men like Carnegie and Rockefeller became very rich.
When workers protested, they weren’t asking politely. They were fighting to survive. Police and private guards attacked them. Some workers were even killed. In 1886, the Haymarket Riot in Chicago turned into a battle. Out of this fight came one demand: workers deserved respect.
Labor Day was not given as a gift. It was forced. It was a deal to calm workers down before they burned the whole system to the ground.
Fast Forward to Today
We think life is better now. We have laws, unions, and safety rules. But look closer. The same game is still going on.
Wages stay the same, but prices go up.
Big companies make record profits, but pensions disappear.
AI and machines make work faster, but the money flows up to the top, not out to the people who do the work.
When Dollar General makes more money, it’s not because families are doing well. It’s because people are broke and forced to buy cheap food full of chemicals. That’s not success. That’s sickness.
The Clamp
I call it “the clamp.” You feel it when:
Your grocery bill rises, but your paycheck does not.
You spend hours searching for jobs that don’t last.
Your health gets worse because real food costs too much.
The clamp is how the system works: it squeezes you tighter, bit by bit, so you don’t notice until you can’t breathe.
In the 1800s, the clamp was dangerous factory jobs. In 2025, the clamp is debt, fake food, and a company that can fire you by Zoom in five minutes.
The faces change. The clamp stays the same.
Labor Day in Portland
This year in Portland (and many other cities), people will march under the banner “Workers Over Billionaires.” They’re waking up. They know asking nicely doesn’t work. They know the bosses won’t just hand back power.
But here’s the truth: marching is not enough. You can’t beat the empire at its own game.
The empire controls jobs, food stores, and politicians. You don’t fix the empire. You replace it.
A Better Way: Sovereignty
Here’s how we fight back:
Food: Learn to cook and keep a pantry. A simple chicken broth can heal more than any pill.
Work: Build skills that let you earn on your own. Use AI, consulting, or crafts that add real value.
Wealth: Wealth isn’t in stock charts or crypto. It’s in what you can eat, use, or trade right now.
Community: Workers once built unions as families, not just clubs. Leaders today need tribes of people who share values, not HR rules.
This is what Second Life Leader is about. Not waiting for the empire’s scraps, but building something beyond it.
What “Workers Over Billionaires” Really Means
This is not about left or right politics. It’s about truth. Workers make the world run. Billionaires pull value out. If you don’t play their game, they play you.
Labor Day should remind us: the real power is with the people who build, grow, and risk. The empire wants you to forget this. It wants you shopping for 50% off mattresses.
But the future will not belong to billionaires. It will belong to people who stop waiting for permission and build their own life.
My Story
I know this because it happened to me.
I worked 20 years in corporate America. I gave them my effort and loyalty. Then, one day, I got a five-minute Zoom call: “Your job is gone.” That was it.
No pension. No thanks. Just “goodbye.”
That’s the day I stopped trusting the system.
I rebuilt by creating my own path—through writing, through tech, through sovereignty. That’s why I started Second Life Leader.
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably felt it too. The clamp gets tighter. The system shrugs. You only have two choices:
Wait and hope.
Build something new.
I chose the second.
This Labor Day
When you hear “Workers Over Billionaires,” don’t just think of signs and chants. Think of your own life.
Where are you still trapped?
Where are you still waiting for scraps?
What can you take back today?
The future isn’t handed down from billionaires. It’s built by people who choose sovereignty.
That’s what we’re here to do.
✍️ SHARE YOUR STORY
If you're navigating collapse, burnout, or just done playing a game that doesn’t reward truth—
You’re not alone.
And you're not broken.
You may just be entering your Forge.
👉 Share Your Story Here
(I read every one.)
Some of you may be invited:
Onto the podcast
Into the community
Or deeper into the rebuild
⚔️ KNOW SOMEONE BUILDING A TECH PROJECT?
I’m working with an elite engineering firm (BairesDev) to bring Sovereign-level support to founders, operators, and teams building real technology.
If you know someone:
Building a product
Scaling a SaaS
Or managing a digital transformation…
I’d love to hear about it.
👉 Refer a Project Here
(Quick form. Just the basics. I’ll take it from there.)
No pitch. No pressure. Just open the gate.
CLOSING CREED
We are not cogs in a billionaire’s machine.
We are builders, makers, and leaders of our own lives.
We choose sovereignty over scraps.
We forge community, not dependency.
We claim power through presence, discipline, and truth.
We are the workers who will not bow—we are the fire that builds the future.
— Doug Utberg