Keala, well said and I agree in the following sense: I think the transition from our long history of living under the pervasive influence of not only the Protestant work ethic, but also its Asian equivalent--which have lead to the virtual deification of "paid" work as not only both economically and socially normal and desirable, but also even compulsory in a 
positive sense--for all the currently valid reasons cited above by Mr. Kropar.  

But I also think the "dark side" of compulsory "work"--i.e. forcing everyone, upon reaching adulthood (and often earlier in most cultures throughout so-called "civilized" human history) to "sell" something--at least their labor--in order to "earn" their ostensible "right to life", which I regard as the most ancient abuse of all in the sense the unborn have never had any advanced input--much less "informed" prior consent--before being born and then subjected to the imposition of social contracts the unborn have never "consented" to before birth.