The only way that anybody has gotten rich is by taking undeserved money from other people. There is no way to work hard enough in one lifetime to earn a billion dollars.
Even if you win the lottery, for example, that wouldn’t work without all of those gambling addicts losing their money to you.
Yup capitalism is a zero sum game. It’s why I hate people pushing UBI as a solution.
Wait, why isn’t UBI a solution?
Because like I just said is a zero sum game.
Capitalism can’t have a closed system of just taxing it from the rich and giving it back to the rich through buying from them.
That wealth is stolen from the periphery countries, who slave away for our quality of life.
That wealth is stolen from the periphery countries, who slave away for our quality of life.
Capitalism has to go, but the vast majority of the proletariat in developed countries see only pennies on the dollar in ‘gains’ from the proletariat in developing countries being exploited currently; and even the overall situation of lopsided wealth distribution is more the function of how long the exploitation has been going on for rather than the effect of current exploitation of the labor market.
So we just suck it up and die?
No, you look at leftist solutions that don’t involve capitalism.
Specific suggestions? UBI is a specific suggestions that moves left. Site it’s still “right”, but it’s left of the current situation.
Again specific suggestions?
Anarchism/Communism.
Capitalism 100% has to go.
For example?
Anarchism, Communism?
UBI needs to be tied to an index related to the cost of living, which will result in compounding inflation (which can be a good thing, but that’s an economics argument not worth exploring). As a solution, it won’t fix anything by itself. We also need reforms like restrictions on corporate ownership of residential property, interest rate and banking restrictions, trading reform, and a progressive tax code that makes tax dodgers pay.
It is difficult for me to imagine what “personal liberty” is enjoyed by an unemployed person, who goes about hungry, and cannot find employment.
Real liberty can exist only where exploitation has been abolished, where there is no oppression of some by others, where there is no unemployment and poverty, where a man is not haunted by the fear of being tomorrow deprived of work, of home and of bread. Only in such a society is real, and not paper, personal and every other liberty possible.
Money is the barometer of a society’s virtue. When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion–when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing–when you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors–when you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don’t protect you against them, but protect them against you–when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice–you may know that your society is doomed. Money is so noble a medium that does not compete with guns and it does not make terms with brutality. It will not permit a country to survive as half-property, half-loot
Here’s a possible solution that I haven’t thought about much:
One could start a non profit corp or co-op to compete with for profit corps–like a grocery store. Poor people are the employees, so one can redirect retained earnings to them as bonuses, higher education, and training.
Once one has enough non profit corps around the us that everyone loves, one can lobby or place politicians to outlaw for-profit corps.
Don’t have to steal it with a functioning democracy. Just outlaw billionaires and tax them out of existence, with a clear and transparent plan to invest the proceeds for the benefit of the people.
Win Congress, restructure SCOTUS, overturn citizens united, and then pass the above reforms. It would get us a long way towards equitability.
Capitalism is inherently incompatible with democracy. When you have a system where people are allowed to gain power over other people, the powerful will stop at nothing to seize more power, including changing the laws.
I don’t disagree with you. I think the ideal democracy would have sufficient constraints on capitalism to ensure this doesn’t happen. Perhaps in addition to the above, a constitutional amendment to get money out of politics and a non-partisan watchdog group with teeth to hammer down any attempts to circumvent.
The problem with keeping capitalism as the system of economics in any form is that it will always degrade back to fascism since the system will inherently have people with power over other people.
Exactly. Something something perfection the enemy of progress. Progressive policies get in the way of them selves by not focusing on your commented problems FIRST. There can be NO progress without overturning of Citizens United.
That’s how they got rich
Imagine a society that didn’t allow the rich stealing, made sure people had enough and could thrive without worrying about being destitute? If only …from Canada here though our social net is okay, but not as good as it could be.
Rich people are poor people but with money
