Everybody knows one. The kid whose never had to work a day in his life but drives an Audi A6 and gets manicures and pedicures regularly. Ironically, he never offers to pay for the check because he’s so financially aloof that he believes that a bill has no substantial impact on anyone else’s financial standing. He thinks he’s entitled to things his father earned even though he dropped out of college after sophomore year because classes were starting to get hard.
Now, the axe to grind isn’t with the person having the money (this is America!), it’s the money mentality that breeds an inflated sense of self and a condescending view of others who need to buy a subway pass and prefer not to shop at Whole Foods.
Redditor ColonelSwifty posed the question: What’s the worst case of ‘rich kid syndrome’ you’ve seen?
I’ve inserted some of the most head-shaking responses below with added commentary in italics.
A kid in my graduating high school class was very wealthy. His parents bought him a Land Rover when he was 16 and he crashed it into a school bus. They bought him another Land Rover and he lost it street racing. Guess what? They bought him a Mercedes.
This kid needs to spend one week taking the New York subway at 9 am in the dead of summer. That will put some hair on his back.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BTwLuoTl0vE/?taken-by=richkidsofinstagram
Dude would stand in a club and rip up bills of 10 euro yelling “this is nothing to me!”. Okay, how about just giving away beer instead of antagonizing anyone in sight.
I’ll make sure to bring Scotch tape when I go out with this asshole.
My suite mate freshman year of college would pay me, my roommate and his roommate to his chores for him every couple of weeks. He literally gave me $20 for making his bed.
A symbiotic relationship–an exchange of goods and services for monetary value. This is something I can get behind.
Was a RA in college.
One of my residents was a rich freshman from Rhode Island. He lives on an island and takes a ferry into town.
Anyways, his first week, he asked if there was fresh water available in the shower. I didn’t understand what he meant, but apparently he didn’t like showering with city water and didn’t realize it was everywhere he went. I was so shocked and didn’t know what to say that I suggested he used water bottles to clean him. Yeah, he didn’t last long.
Wait, so the Rhode Island shower water isn’t Fiji?
Once when I was at a camp, me and a few other kids were playing a game. Kids from a different part of the camp came over and told us to leave. We replied that we were there first. One of them replied “yeah but does your dad have a helicopter.”
Please tell me you gave this asshole a swirly.
I volunteer for Burning Man, which happens to attract some of the worst trustafarians I have ever seen. People who claim to live bohemian lifestyles of art and magic, that also have unending parental support for their magical globetrotting adventure.
It’s frustrating, because these people live in the most sheltered bubble of all. I can’t even begin to describe how infuriating it is to deal with folks who can drop $50,000 on a week at a festival.
The juxtaposition of rich douches pretending to find fulfillment through non-materialistic things is so contrived it’s laughable.
Fraternity did a pledge event in which we were placed in a limo.
Normal Friend: “Wow, this is awesome! I’ve never been in a limo before!”
Rich Kid Syndrome Friend: “Haven’t you ever been to the airport??”
Usually my dad drives me in his 2005 Kia Optima. Fuck with me.
When I was a broke-as-fuck bike messenger, I was dating a woman who was heir to a major restaurant fortune. One evening, she wanted to go to a club downtown, and I said I couldn’t go because I didn’t have any money. She said I should come on anyway so I figured she’s footing the bill.
When we got to the club and it’s time to pay the cover at the door, she pays for herself and starts to walk in. I’m like, “hey–I don’t have any money. I can’t get in.” She comes back out and tells me to just put it on my credit card, but of course I don’t have one. The she tells me she’ll drive me to an ATM. But of course I don’t have a bank account because I’m broke.
I’m standing there in the street with her, trying futilely to explain that I literally do not own any money. She could not grasp the concept. I ended up walking home and she went to the club.
We did not last long.
Dude, you really gotta get a bank account.
[h/t Reddit]