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> Modern America favors capital The universe favors capital because capital is more mobile than labor.

by nordsieck 9y ago

vm 9y ago
This is changing in the software world. Software gives "labor" more scalability and leverage than ever before.
- rectang 9y ago
  This is one of the reasons I feel good about contributing to open source. It boosts the prospects of at least some workers, while at the same time offering great value for employers, for industry, and for society at large.
- vm 9y ago
  I was referring to software developers having greater leverage in the labor market. Writing useful software gives developers higher economic output for their labor than we’ve had in history. It also creates unique mobility opportunities for remote developers. It is changing the capital vs labor dynamic. This is true for a narrow part of the labor market, which is why I put quotes around the word labor. Can’t edit my earlier comment but felt I should clarify.
rectang 9y ago
That sounds like a king justifying the divine right of kings... The effect of mobility is offset by there being more workers than owners. These outcomes are not inevitable.
- nordsieck 9y ago
  > The effect of mobility is offset by there being more workers than owners. It's actually the opposite. The more workers there are the more likely some of them will defect for whatever capital offers.
  - rectang 9y ago
    In the labor market, that's true. ("We offer unmatched benefits, including your choice of wide-mouthed bottles or adult diapers!") But in politics, the defections must be measured as a proportion of the total population.
mmagin 9y ago
Some of the relatively higher mobility of capital is due to the policies which capital has persuaded politicians to enact.
evanlivingston 9y ago
The universe has a preference for mobility?
- nordsieck 9y ago
  Capital can choose which jurisdiction it wants to be under much more easily than labor. This "forces" laws to be more favorable to capital than labor.
baxtr 9y ago
The difference is that physical material need to be transported. I don’t think you can move warehouse overseas to save capital
squarefoot 9y ago
Or maybe because capital buys people (->votes->power->more capital).

> Modern America favors capital The universe favors capital because capital is more mobile than labor.

vm 9y ago

This is changing in the software world. Software gives "labor" more scalability and leverage than ever before.

rectang 9y ago
This is one of the reasons I feel good about contributing to open source. It boosts the prospects of at least some workers, while at the same time offering great value for employers, for industry, and for society at large.
vm 9y ago
I was referring to software developers having greater leverage in the labor market. Writing useful software gives developers higher economic output for their labor than we’ve had in history. It also creates unique mobility opportunities for remote developers. It is changing the capital vs labor dynamic. This is true for a narrow part of the labor market, which is why I put quotes around the word labor. Can’t edit my earlier comment but felt I should clarify.

rectang 9y ago

That sounds like a king justifying the divine right of kings... The effect of mobility is offset by there being more workers than owners. These outcomes are not inevitable.

nordsieck 9y ago
> The effect of mobility is offset by there being more workers than owners. It's actually the opposite. The more workers there are the more likely some of them will defect for whatever capital offers.
- rectang 9y ago
  In the labor market, that's true. ("We offer unmatched benefits, including your choice of wide-mouthed bottles or adult diapers!") But in politics, the defections must be measured as a proportion of the total population.

mmagin 9y ago

Some of the relatively higher mobility of capital is due to the policies which capital has persuaded politicians to enact.

evanlivingston 9y ago

The universe has a preference for mobility?

nordsieck 9y ago
Capital can choose which jurisdiction it wants to be under much more easily than labor. This "forces" laws to be more favorable to capital than labor.

baxtr 9y ago

The difference is that physical material need to be transported. I don’t think you can move warehouse overseas to save capital

squarefoot 9y ago

Or maybe because capital buys people (->votes->power->more capital).