[tzs]

Why are you pissed off? That quote seems basically accurate, although we can quibble about how far back we have to go for it it apply and what exactly qualifies as the "common man".

Through much of history, hard work and budgeting where not the road to riches--they were the road to not starving or, in good times, to being reasonably well off. The path to being rich was often blocked by ethnic background, religious background, or social class.

Yes, some people were able to break through those barriers, but that usually took more than just hard work and budgeting. They needed luck or brilliance.