6 ms·

A rising tide floats all boats.

gunfighthacksaw 5y ago
And drowns those treading water.
vannevar 5y ago
Unfortunately, the economy does not behave like a fluid, and a rising economy raises the wealthiest boats orders of magnitude higher than middle-class boats, and thousands of times higher than the poorest boats, which rise imperceptibly by comparison.
- josephcsible 5y ago
  If something helps everyone, it's a good thing even if it helps rich people more than poor people.
  - spacemanmatt 5y ago
    So-called meritocracies don't help everyone
  - vannevar 5y ago
    Really? Say you're working for a company that has a great year, profits up 50%. Your boss gets a 20% raise. You and your team get coupons for free fries at McDonald's. As your boss hands out the coupons, he assures you that profit is a good thing, even if it helps management more than workers.
    - olliej 5y ago
      I'm not sure what you're trying to say - that because some "undeserving" people will get more as well, nothing should change?
      - vannevar 5y ago
        No, I'm pointing out that the wealthy take a bigger cut of economic growth not because they contributed more, but simply because they are in a position of power to do so. We can't leave capitalism unregulated and expect a meritocracy to emerge spontaneously.
  - nileshtrivedi 5y ago
    Wealth inequality leads to inequality of dignity as it's directly tied to power balance among those unequal individuals.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
spacemanmatt 5y ago
Good ole trickle-down theory, eh
- robocat 5y ago
  Do you think trickle-down maybe works for technology? The iPad I am typing on in New Zealand, communicating with the world. How many people in the world have a smart phone and access to fantastic public information on the internet? Or is trickle-down working for the majority of people around the world that have moved out of extreme poverty? In 1990 36% of the world lived in extreme poverty. In 2015 that had dropped to 10%. Is that trickle-down? The ultra-wealthy are obscenely richer, but that doesn’t mean that the poor are not better off too. I agree with your sentiment: trickle-down doesn’t feel like it is working in New Zealand, but I’m unsure how much of the feeling is based on fact versus envy.
  - spacemanmatt 5y ago
    No, I don't think trickle-down theory is working for anyone except the propagandists who propose it as anything less than a plain insult to people with less. Are you actually suggesting that Reagonomics was not an outright fraud?

And drowns those treading water.

Unfortunately, the economy does not behave like a fluid, and a rising economy raises the wealthiest boats orders of magnitude higher than middle-class boats, and thousands of times higher than the poorest boats, which rise imperceptibly by comparison.

josephcsible 5y ago
If something helps everyone, it's a good thing even if it helps rich people more than poor people.
- spacemanmatt 5y ago
  So-called meritocracies don't help everyone
- vannevar 5y ago
  Really? Say you're working for a company that has a great year, profits up 50%. Your boss gets a 20% raise. You and your team get coupons for free fries at McDonald's. As your boss hands out the coupons, he assures you that profit is a good thing, even if it helps management more than workers.
  - olliej 5y ago
    I'm not sure what you're trying to say - that because some "undeserving" people will get more as well, nothing should change?
    - vannevar 5y ago
      No, I'm pointing out that the wealthy take a bigger cut of economic growth not because they contributed more, but simply because they are in a position of power to do so. We can't leave capitalism unregulated and expect a meritocracy to emerge spontaneously.
- nileshtrivedi 5y ago
  Wealth inequality leads to inequality of dignity as it's directly tied to power balance among those unequal individuals.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]

spacemanmatt 5y ago

Good ole trickle-down theory, eh

robocat 5y ago
Do you think trickle-down maybe works for technology? The iPad I am typing on in New Zealand, communicating with the world. How many people in the world have a smart phone and access to fantastic public information on the internet? Or is trickle-down working for the majority of people around the world that have moved out of extreme poverty? In 1990 36% of the world lived in extreme poverty. In 2015 that had dropped to 10%. Is that trickle-down? The ultra-wealthy are obscenely richer, but that doesn’t mean that the poor are not better off too. I agree with your sentiment: trickle-down doesn’t feel like it is working in New Zealand, but I’m unsure how much of the feeling is based on fact versus envy.
- spacemanmatt 5y ago
  No, I don't think trickle-down theory is working for anyone except the propagandists who propose it as anything less than a plain insult to people with less. Are you actually suggesting that Reagonomics was not an outright fraud?