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No, communism isn't the answer. Some people having an edge over others is not an issue in the first place.
by OCASM 7y ago
No, communism isn't the answer. Some people having an edge over others is not an issue in the first place.
- tachyonbeam 7y agoI believe that it's useful to have capitalistic motivations to motivate people to perform. You should be able to start a business and get outsized returns if you take risks and succeed. However, I also believe in equal opportunities, and giving kids a more equal start.
- friedman23 7y agoWe could easily give kids an equal start if we mentally handicap them all at birth.
- ownagefool 7y agoSure, but it'd also be easier to just provider decent nutrition at school, to ensure it's actually happening, irregardless of whether the parents are rich or not. Disclaimer: I'm Scottish/European; we have different cultural thoughts on these issues
- pandaman 7y agoThis implies that all people have the same mental and physical abilities and any observable differences are due to nutrition. One famous European (albeit Austrian), has debunked this theory in 1860s. I am not sure if his discoveries are taught in Europe nowadays though.
- ownagefool 7y agoThe generic argument is that people should have an equal start otherwise we're running a Ponzi scheme society. This doesn't mean that people should have an equal finish though, as if you work harder and smarter, not many would you shouldn't reap the rewards.
- toasterlovin 7y agoWhat you’re suggesting is a pretty massive intervention. I think it’s useful to know whether or not your proposed intervention would actually do anything before seriously putting it forward. Do you know whether schooling actually has a causal effect on life outcomes? I think you might be surprised if you start reading the literature on this.
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- jamescostian 7y agoThis isn't someone having an edge over someone else because they worked for it, took a risk for it, or earned it in any way. It's because they had different parents - capitalism is about rewarding work, risk, etc not having parents who can afford to send you to a better school. Communism pretends to seek equality at all times for all, but this is only proposing a more equal start for all, and still allows some to do better than others. Are you sure authoritarianism isn't the word you were looking for?
- vageli 7y ago> Capitalism is about rewarding work, risk, etc not having parents who can afford to send you to a better school. Since when is capitalism _about_ rewarding work and risk?
- jamescostian 7y agoI don't personally think that capitalism does a good job of rewarding work. But, IME, people who are in favor or capitalism are under the impression that it's a system that allows anyone to succeed and do well, all they have to do is work hard, get money, invest, start their own business, etc. They feel communism is unfair as it rewards people for doing nothing, while capitalism allows rags-to-riches based on work and risk AIUI
- vageli 7y agoMany people would characterize this misconception as the lie of the American dream. I don't know if there ever has been a time under capitalist systems where things like inheritance, etc (which would unlevel the playing field, as it were) were explicitly banned.
- gfodor 7y agoA large part of the reason capitalism works is not because people want to make a better life for themselves, but because they want to make a better life for their kids. In a system where a parent can not work hard to increase the likelihood of their children’s’ success in life, likely the system would collapse. (This doesn’t mean that schools shouldn’t become more socialized, I’m pointing out the flaw in the argument that capitalism is tied to individual benefit. For any parent, their individual benefit takes a back seat to that of their kids.)