4 ms·

Rich people skew right-leaning. We can imagine many reasons for this, but I'll break it into two groups: 1. The same moral leanings that are identified with ri

Rich people skew right-leaning. We can imagine many reasons for this, but I'll break it into two groups: 1. The same moral leanings that are identified with right-leaning parties are moral leanings, that when applied to your own life, can help make you more wealthy. 2. Having these moral leanings have no impact on your future success. Considering that in absolute numbers the rich are more charitable and pay more taxes than the poor, and if you believe that the majority of the rich are strong value-creators (implying that they are generative, and are contributing positively to the economy rather than playing a zero-sum game), then for any portion of factor #1 above that is true, there is a moral argument to be made that adopting right-leaning values leads to a better world for both yourself, and for society as a whole. All of this is speculative and stated in broad generalizations, but it's an argument that I've worked into my mind as a Pascal's wager of sorts and that I've found very convincing.

harimau777 7y ago
I think you make an interesting point. However, I think there are some other considerations that should be factored in: - The good that left wing policies would have done if they had been implemented. - Situations where the economy is a zero sum game (e.g. desirable housing). - The possibility that the good that comes from the rich is not evenly distributed. (In this case I mean distribution different between different segments of the non-rich. I don't mean distribution between the rich and everyone else.) It seems to me that the logic that you present could act as a sort of social contract that basically say "in exchange for implementing right wing policies that make conservatives rich, you will benefit from their charity, taxes, and economic growth". In that case, I could see the increasing unrest and polarization in America being due to a growing segment of the population feeling that the contract has been broken.
goto11 7y ago
It could also be that right-wing policies protect the interest of the rich and provides the ideology that this is fair and just. So if your are rich, right-leaning morals will make you richer and make you feel better about it. But if you are not rich, it will do the opposite.

harimau777 7y ago

I think you make an interesting point. However, I think there are some other considerations that should be factored in: - The good that left wing policies would have done if they had been implemented. - Situations where the economy is a zero sum game (e.g. desirable housing). - The possibility that the good that comes from the rich is not evenly distributed. (In this case I mean distribution different between different segments of the non-rich. I don't mean distribution between the rich and everyone else.) It seems to me that the logic that you present could act as a sort of social contract that basically say "in exchange for implementing right wing policies that make conservatives rich, you will benefit from their charity, taxes, and economic growth". In that case, I could see the increasing unrest and polarization in America being due to a growing segment of the population feeling that the contract has been broken.

goto11 7y ago

It could also be that right-wing policies protect the interest of the rich and provides the ideology that this is fair and just. So if your are rich, right-leaning morals will make you richer and make you feel better about it. But if you are not rich, it will do the opposite.