3 ms·

Sorry, I can't stomach another self-righteous screed against people's private choices that offend the sensibility of the author. It seems that I was born withou

Sorry, I can't stomach another self-righteous screed against people's private choices that offend the sensibility of the author. It seems that I was born without the "meddle in other people's affairs" gene, which is so widespread and popular in society. I can't get worked up in a hissy-fit if other people smoke, or watch goat porn, or work more than I would chose to. A lot of people think something is wrong with me, but I enjoy the free time I save from not caring about others' private lives. The author's flawed world-view can be summed up in the following quote: >In other words, if as a society we made a collective decision to get by on the amount we produced and consumed seventeen years ago, we could cut back from the standard forty-hour week to 5.3 hours per day The error is that we "as a society" don't make choices. Individuals do. If I thought a conspiracy of government officials and oligarchs were making work choices for "society" as a whole, then I might be as offended as the author. Humans have consistently chosen to live better rather than work less. I live in much greater wealth than my father did at my age in the '60s and '70s and I am happy about that. You would have a hard time convincing me to give up dishwashers, central air, my own bathroom, wireless internet, and satellite TV in order to work less. The average person in the western world has the electronic equivalent of hundreds of human servants working for him. It's my choice to accept the luxuries available to me, and other people are free to make different choices.

nazgulnarsil 18y ago
sure, i'm all for freedom of choice. but you can't ignore that there are conscious decisions about how society is run that wind up heavily influencing people's behavior. what do you think all those government agencies do? FCC, FDA, FAA, IRS, the Fed, etc. (department of education has a huge influence on ideology). There are dozens of major ones that affect our decisions by deciding what A and B will be and excluding C.
- DmitriLebedev 18y ago
  It even doesn't take a conspiracy to start a propaganda. Successful companies support PR, advertizing and, for example, style magazines, which improves their business, and other businesses see that and copy that. The argument, that politicians have elitist views on the society, is also relevant. It doesn't mean that they conspire, it's just how they see the world.
mindslight 18y ago
> The error is that we "as a society" don't make choices. Individuals do. If I thought a conspiracy of government officials and oligarchs were making work choices for "society" as a whole, then I might be as offended as the author. But that's basically the official policy. When the federal reserve lowers interest rates, it creates a supply of cheap money which is then invested, driving up the demand for labor (and higher wages encouraging individuals to meet the demand). As the federal reserve adjusts interests rates with the goal of sustaining "full employment", a closed loop is created.
dhs 18y ago
No doubt. But is my choice to work so I can buy a new gaming console for my kids instead of spending that time playing with them using the old one really one that is sure to have no negative impact on their (and my) life?

nazgulnarsil 18y ago

sure, i'm all for freedom of choice. but you can't ignore that there are conscious decisions about how society is run that wind up heavily influencing people's behavior. what do you think all those government agencies do? FCC, FDA, FAA, IRS, the Fed, etc. (department of education has a huge influence on ideology). There are dozens of major ones that affect our decisions by deciding what A and B will be and excluding C.

DmitriLebedev 18y ago
It even doesn't take a conspiracy to start a propaganda. Successful companies support PR, advertizing and, for example, style magazines, which improves their business, and other businesses see that and copy that. The argument, that politicians have elitist views on the society, is also relevant. It doesn't mean that they conspire, it's just how they see the world.

mindslight 18y ago

> The error is that we "as a society" don't make choices. Individuals do. If I thought a conspiracy of government officials and oligarchs were making work choices for "society" as a whole, then I might be as offended as the author. But that's basically the official policy. When the federal reserve lowers interest rates, it creates a supply of cheap money which is then invested, driving up the demand for labor (and higher wages encouraging individuals to meet the demand). As the federal reserve adjusts interests rates with the goal of sustaining "full employment", a closed loop is created.

dhs 18y ago

No doubt. But is my choice to work so I can buy a new gaming console for my kids instead of spending that time playing with them using the old one really one that is sure to have no negative impact on their (and my) life?