Do you think the person to whom you replied doesn't pay taxes or something?

I guess it felt to me that the OP was answering the question "why are we still working this hard" by giving an example of how we actually could work less.

Which does not seem to be the case at all. The OP seems closer to someone who would be wealthy if they worked full time (they say that by working 10-20h a week, they still make more than people on minimum wage).

They conclude with "The choice is there". Sure, "the choice is there" when you are wealthy enough.

I work, earn money and pay taxes. So does my wife. We have a mortgage, and pay property taxes too.

Is it a requirement of society to work maxx?

If a doctor can earn $50k a year working one day a week and a Walmart worker has to work 40 hours a week to earn $50k, does the doctor have some kind of obligation to work and earn more? What if they just want the kind of life $50k a year allows for?

Should the Walmart worker do 80 hour weeks to contribute the same taxes as an engineer working 40 hour weeks?

Surely we all get to choose how much we work.

If I want to live in a 100 year old house and ride my bike with no phone and no tv, and modest lifestyle, it’s absurd I should be forced to work “full time” when I earn as much as I want to live the life I want. That is my choice.

That was a genuine question: you say you don't have to worry about paying health insurance because you immigrated to a country where it's free, right?

My question is: if it's free, it comes from taxes. And if you earn less, you contribute less. Does it pay for your health insurance, or do you benefit from the fact that others work more and contribute more?

Not saying you should be ashamed at all. Just wondering if you would get the same level of health insurance in a world where everybody did the same as you. I guess not? Which is maybe fine, of course.

I pay more taxes than the millions of people on minimum wage.

Ashamed is the opposite of how I feel.

> I pay more taxes than the millions of people on minimum wage.

I assume those people couldn't survive on working 10-20 hours a week, if they are on minimum wage at 100%?

I guess what I am saying is "good for you, but it's not like everybody can do that". You are lucky that you can do that, it's not "just a choice everyone can make".

It would be akin to saying "I had a high-paying job in a rich country for a few years, and then I retired in a poor country where I live like a king", in that... sure, but not everybody can have a high-paying job in a rich country for a few years, so being able to do that requires being privileged in the first place. I think it doesn't hurt to realise it.