>But for Gen-Z ers that work in low paying warehouse jobs, they won't be as fortunate.

Very good example. I have multiple friends in "warehouse jobs" and they hate it. It breaks down their bodies, the breaks are inadequate, the pay is JUST barely enough to keep them from quitting on the spot, etc. They have no energy for anything beyond work. They go home, try to recover, and wake up the next day to do it all again. God forbid they get a night shift.

>a craft-based work like woodworking, plumbing, is still the ticket from poverty to at least middle class.

Carpentry is a solid profession but you need to be good. Very good. It's a lot of work getting the referrals to keep a steady income stream. I have a couple of buddies who do it and it's really feast or famine unless you link up with a general contractor who can give you a ton of work. As for plumbing, it's an apprenticeship situation usually, so breaking in can be hard. The more plumbers there are, the less work there is for plumbers, so some are not too keen to set you up. This varies wildly of course, but you can't just set up shop as a plumber anywhere you want with ease. It can be a tricky road. You're right though, good opportunities there. If you've got the mind to learn it that is. Those aren't exactly easy jobs!

The arts and culture argument is tricky and multi-faceted but I'll try to keep this as concise as I can. Know that this won't have as many citations and is largely opinion-based. That seems appropriate to me though when discussing something as difficult to quantify as "the value of art." I think an example will be the best way to describe this.

In the 1960's and 1970's, there was a lot more investment at the federal level in the arts. While there were different grants out there at different levels, the most noteworthy then - and largely today - is probably the NEH: The National Endowment for the Humanities. If you have a cultural/arts project you think is worthwhile, you can apply for a piece of that pie. During that time these film programs opened up all over the US built on a similar model: Teach kids how to shoot, edit, and generally work with 16mm film. The focus was providing an opportunity in impoverished communities, though it certainly wasn't restricted to that. Apalshop is one of the most famous examples (in Appalachia, which is one of the biggest examples of poverty in the US), and what's so cool is it is still running to this day [1]. These programs sprung up everywhere and produced a staggering amount of documentaries and other 16mm film projects that have contributed richly to American culture, while also paving the way for a whole generation of filmmakers and creating opportunities where there seemingly was none for many. Sadly, the NEH has been systematically defunded over the decades, especially under Ronald Reagan (surprise surprise), and most of these programs shuttered in the early 90's. My home city of New Orleans has one of the only remaining ones from that original era actually, called NOVAC. But that's another story haha.

Anyway this example is sort of designed to hit a lot of points for me. It wasn't just about "hey let's art because art and uhhh yeah that's good right?" This program 1) contributed to American culture, 2) provided opportunities to people who had few, 3) created tons of jobs, and 4) just overall integrated well with their communities. The relative investment compared to, say, yet another tank or fighter jet, was very minimal and created concrete outcomes for communities and enriched the American people. I think the need for tax dollars to go towards those projects is self-evident, though obviously not everyone agrees with that.

Hopefully that makes sense lol

[1] https://appalshop.org/story