4 ms·

Value creation is what we want to reward, I think.

by hnal943 10y ago

marklgr 10y ago
This often is a euphemism for "making money is good". Except for the worst cases of rents (or scams), if you're making money, this means someone found what you do valuable, so hey, you're creating value. The tacit corollary is, if you're not making money, you're not creating much value (not logically correct obviously, but here it goes). So one should define how you measure value, and what cost (social, externalities etc.) we should be ready to accept for each type of value.
voxic11 10y ago
This can be very hard to nail down though at the large scale. For instance Trump managed to secure the largest tax break in New York history in the 80s by convincing the government that his buildings for the Uber rich would be very valuable to the city.
- crusso 10y ago
  That's a direct example where government power rewarded a crony. Reward for value creation is something that the free market does every day in trillions of transactions.
  - sanderjd 10y ago
    It also tends to over-reward those who create value by having a strong negotiating position (usually due to coming to the table with lots of capital) and under-reward those who create value through labor. This is better than crony-ism, but it's not at all a panacea.
    - crusso 10y ago
      Over-reward? By what measure? If capital amplifies negotiating power then it means that capital is more important. One who can acquire capital to use in negotiation is using the most leverage to create value. Labor's value is exactly what someone is willing to pay for it.
      - sanderjd 10y ago
        By the measures of hard work and value creation being discussed in this thread. I'm sure you disagree. I'll try to save some time by stipulating that this is a value judgment, I likely disagree with your disagreement, and I am happy to agree to disagree.
Frondo 10y ago
So, what value is a hospice worker or a nurse creating to the world? What value is a grade school teacher creating? Hotel rooms need to be cleaned, and your coffee needs to be made. What value is that hotel room cleaner bringing into things? Or the dude framing drywall in your house? To me, to be honest, "value creation" sounds more like "the stuff I like to think I'm doing" than a real thing.

Value creation is what we want to reward, I think.

by hnal943 10y ago

Value creation is what we want to reward, I think.

This often is a euphemism for "making money is good". Except for the worst cases of rents (or scams), if you're making money, this means someone found what you do valuable, so hey, you're creating value. The tacit corollary is, if you're not making money, you're not creating much value (not logically correct obviously, but here it goes). So one should define how you measure value, and what cost (social, externalities etc.) we should be ready to accept for each type of value.

voxic11 10y ago

This can be very hard to nail down though at the large scale. For instance Trump managed to secure the largest tax break in New York history in the 80s by convincing the government that his buildings for the Uber rich would be very valuable to the city.

crusso 10y ago
That's a direct example where government power rewarded a crony. Reward for value creation is something that the free market does every day in trillions of transactions.
- sanderjd 10y ago
  It also tends to over-reward those who create value by having a strong negotiating position (usually due to coming to the table with lots of capital) and under-reward those who create value through labor. This is better than crony-ism, but it's not at all a panacea.
  - crusso 10y ago
    Over-reward? By what measure? If capital amplifies negotiating power then it means that capital is more important. One who can acquire capital to use in negotiation is using the most leverage to create value. Labor's value is exactly what someone is willing to pay for it.
    - sanderjd 10y ago
      By the measures of hard work and value creation being discussed in this thread. I'm sure you disagree. I'll try to save some time by stipulating that this is a value judgment, I likely disagree with your disagreement, and I am happy to agree to disagree.

Frondo 10y ago

So, what value is a hospice worker or a nurse creating to the world? What value is a grade school teacher creating? Hotel rooms need to be cleaned, and your coffee needs to be made. What value is that hotel room cleaner bringing into things? Or the dude framing drywall in your house? To me, to be honest, "value creation" sounds more like "the stuff I like to think I'm doing" than a real thing.