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I know you're making a joke, but a lot of people say this and it always irks me slightly. This narrative that if rich people fund X universally desirable thing,

by darawk 10y ago

I know you're making a joke, but a lot of people say this and it always irks me slightly. This narrative that if rich people fund X universally desirable thing, then only rich people will have X. This is literally never the case in the history of technology. Yes, the rich get it first, but it filters down to poor people really really quickly, especially in the modern age where costs fall at an insane pace. Sorry, didn't mean to respond overly seriously to a lighthearted comment! Just wanted to get that in there.

onion2k 10y ago
In technology, sure. In somewhat less easy to define things, not so much. Rich people tend to have better education, better health care, less worries and stress (or at least less existential worries and better coping mechanisms), and better "life opportunities" as far as anything that requires money is concerned. Poor people can't work in industries where unpaid internships are commonplace for example, because they need to earn money for rent and food. Rich people can work for free if they choose to. Whether a vastly extended lifespan falls under just technology, and thus ends up as something everyone can have, or something else that is actually limited to the rich is something we don't yet know. For example, if the key to a longer life is technology plus retiring as early as possible to limit stress, poor people aren't going to live longer.
- oldmanjay 10y ago
  That doesn't really contradict the notion that rich people fund advances which end up enriching everyone's life, it just poorly expresses your envy about rich people having more than you.
- darawk 10y ago
  Yes, rich people always have better things. Technology and healthcare are no exception. I'm not saying that the poor will ever equal the rich contemporaneously. They won't. What they will do is equal the rich of say, ten years ago (perpetually moving forward). That is the nature of progress.

by darawk 10y ago

onion2k 10y ago

In technology, sure. In somewhat less easy to define things, not so much. Rich people tend to have better education, better health care, less worries and stress (or at least less existential worries and better coping mechanisms), and better "life opportunities" as far as anything that requires money is concerned. Poor people can't work in industries where unpaid internships are commonplace for example, because they need to earn money for rent and food. Rich people can work for free if they choose to. Whether a vastly extended lifespan falls under just technology, and thus ends up as something everyone can have, or something else that is actually limited to the rich is something we don't yet know. For example, if the key to a longer life is technology plus retiring as early as possible to limit stress, poor people aren't going to live longer.

oldmanjay 10y ago
That doesn't really contradict the notion that rich people fund advances which end up enriching everyone's life, it just poorly expresses your envy about rich people having more than you.
darawk 10y ago
Yes, rich people always have better things. Technology and healthcare are no exception. I'm not saying that the poor will ever equal the rich contemporaneously. They won't. What they will do is equal the rich of say, ten years ago (perpetually moving forward). That is the nature of progress.