So you're having a conversation with your friend, and (s)he starts to complain.
"Man, this sucks, I've been having to work over 50 hours per week for the past couple months."
Suddenly, you get that burning feeling inside; that irresistible need to point out just how little that is compared to how many hours you have to work. What right do they have to complain about 10 hour days, when you have to deal with much worse conditions on a regular basis?
Uh oh, it looks like you've got a case of the Better Equals Good syndrome. The fact is, working 10 hour days (11 when you count an hour lunch break) for extended periods of time is not fun nor healthy. It leaves an unacceptable amount of time left over for leisure, quality time with family and friends, household chores, etc. Is it better than 80 hour days? Absolutely. Is it better than that time you had to [fill in the blank with a boastful account of working extreme hours in the past]? Definitely. This in no way makes it alright.
We need to stop letting our egos sabotage our standards of acceptable work hours -- or anything else, for that matter. Rather than telling the extended 50-hour-per-week employee that they need to suck it up because it could be worse, you should be questioning why your employer has no qualms about making you work even longer. After all, which would you rather have: bragging rights, or more free time?
