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That the poor in Africa can have a cellphone... I get a kick out of watching reruns of "Dallas". The mega rich oilmen depicted in that series did not have cel

by jtlien1 11y ago

That the poor in Africa can have a cellphone... I get a kick out of watching reruns of "Dallas". The mega rich oilmen depicted in that series did not have cellphones. But because some people pioneered cellphones and got rich, then because of that the poor in Africa are in someways richer than the oilmen of "Dallas".

gnaritas 11y ago
> then because of that the poor in Africa are in someways richer than the oilmen of "Dallas". Not really; they're still poor, what actually happened is the world changed making things only once not available to anyone available to everyone. That really has no bearing on rich vs poor. Saying I'm richer today than Henry the VIII is clearly wrong, even though I have access to much greater technology and can do things he couldn't, he's was still vastly wealthier with the ability to do whatever he wanted.
- merpnderp 11y ago
  Could he fly to another part of the country? Could he easily and cheaply avoid water/waste borne disease, eat fruit in winter, or call someone from his phone while on the road? He would have paid large portions of his wealth to do any of these things. So yes, nearly everyone is richer than good ol Henry.
  - JustSomeNobody 11y ago
    I am pretty sure the comment you are replying to addressed all of that. "... I have access to much greater technology ..."
    - merpnderp 11y ago
      Wish HN had a an notification option for responses. But I thought I made clear that with all Henry's wealth and a strong desire to purchase the results of modern technology, he couldn't get them. So he could command the labor of many times as many people as a modern poor person, but he couldn't use that labor to accomplish nearly as much as many poor people can today. Is he wealthier? I guess it depends on what you value more. Being able to have someone bring you dirty water from a well on command, or having to get your own purified clean water from the tap in your house.
      - gnaritas 11y ago
        Wealth is power and freedom, not access to stuff; I have to work for a living, Henry the VIII was a king with the power of life and death over others, he was wealthier by any reasonable measure. My access to greater tech doesn't make me wealthier.

by jtlien1 11y ago

gnaritas 11y ago

> then because of that the poor in Africa are in someways richer than the oilmen of "Dallas". Not really; they're still poor, what actually happened is the world changed making things only once not available to anyone available to everyone. That really has no bearing on rich vs poor. Saying I'm richer today than Henry the VIII is clearly wrong, even though I have access to much greater technology and can do things he couldn't, he's was still vastly wealthier with the ability to do whatever he wanted.

merpnderp 11y ago
Could he fly to another part of the country? Could he easily and cheaply avoid water/waste borne disease, eat fruit in winter, or call someone from his phone while on the road? He would have paid large portions of his wealth to do any of these things. So yes, nearly everyone is richer than good ol Henry.
- JustSomeNobody 11y ago
  I am pretty sure the comment you are replying to addressed all of that. "... I have access to much greater technology ..."
  - merpnderp 11y ago
    Wish HN had a an notification option for responses. But I thought I made clear that with all Henry's wealth and a strong desire to purchase the results of modern technology, he couldn't get them. So he could command the labor of many times as many people as a modern poor person, but he couldn't use that labor to accomplish nearly as much as many poor people can today. Is he wealthier? I guess it depends on what you value more. Being able to have someone bring you dirty water from a well on command, or having to get your own purified clean water from the tap in your house.
    - gnaritas 11y ago
      Wealth is power and freedom, not access to stuff; I have to work for a living, Henry the VIII was a king with the power of life and death over others, he was wealthier by any reasonable measure. My access to greater tech doesn't make me wealthier.