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>contrary to wealth, power is a zero sum game Not sure I agree. Power over other people maybe, but there is also power to affect the nonhuman environment. A mo
by SuoDuanDao 4y ago
>contrary to wealth, power is a zero sum game
Not sure I agree. Power over other people maybe, but there is also power to affect the nonhuman environment. A modern farmer's power to alter his immediate environment is similar to a feudal lord's.
- stephc_int13 4y agoThis is semantic counter-argument. I agree that Power, as a word, is a bit vague. And to some extent I also agree that power tends to not be self-limiting to other humans, we tend to use it over animals and nature.
- 29athrowaway 4y agoThere are dimensions of power. A corn farmer is ruled by the government, the market, the seed corporations, the fossil fuel industry, the different machinery manufacturers (vendor lock-in), the banks, etc.
- syntheweave 4y agoOr alternately, the anecdote of Alexander and Diogenes. Wherever you voluntarily become the student, the teacher has the power - even if the teacher has nothing material. The materialistic power ladders are just visible and highly competitive. People who don't want to bother with it usually gravitate towards something more esoteric.
- manmal 4y agoWhere I live, some (ex) farmers own half of their town‘s land. They practically _are_ feudal lords.