4 ms·

As I stand there next to the river, atop a mountain of lifejackets so numerous I need to employ people just to count them - ten thousand lifetimes worth, I see

by IanCal 3y ago

As I stand there next to the river, atop a mountain of lifejackets so numerous I need to employ people just to count them - ten thousand lifetimes worth, I see someone floating past in the water struggling and gasping as they thrash trying to stay afloat. They scream for help, although I can't hear them that well because I'm so high up on this pile and the water keeps getting in their mouth. I am no longer interested in them and look away. As they drift out of earshot I hear them shout at me. How rude! I have done nothing to them.

DeathArrow 3y ago
So, rich people are bad human beings, for not wanting to help others. Someone really are. But some did help others and are continuing to do so. Just by being rich, doesn't mean you are bad. Likewise, by being poor, doesn't mean you are good.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- fireflash38 3y ago
  Corporations in a lot of ways are just diffusions of responsibility. They are also diffusions of culpability. I like to think that the best way to determine culpability for crimes/misdeeds of a corporation is by pay scale, including total benefits. So the CEO earning 200x the common worker at a company bears 200x the culpability of a worker. Billionaires have amassed an astounding quantity of wealth. I'd be very interested to see how much of that wealth was "earned" by actions, how much was grown based purely off capital investments, and how much in total that can trace its roots to dirty money (earned by underpaying, skirting regulations, negative externalities, other questionably legal activity). Do they have any responsibility for that?
  - Jensson 3y ago
    > I like to think that the best way to determine culpability for crimes/misdeeds of a corporation is by pay scale, including total benefits. So the CEO earning 200x the common worker at a company bears 200x the culpability of a worker. Then you should also argue that the CEO gets 200x the credit for all the good things companies does, and then they are clearly in the green and a massive benefit to society. > Corporations in a lot of ways are just diffusions of responsibility. They are also diffusions of culpability. So are governments, just that governments are way larger and therefore way better at hiding things. The biggest pro for governments is that they are less efficient, so they are better at not making things worse in fields where private corporations would try to make things worse as efficiently as possible like healthcare or education. You need some extremely hardworking and creative people to come up with the American healthcare system, a government would have a hard time inventing something like that.
- IanCal 3y ago
  > Just by being rich, doesn't mean you are bad. Hoarding lifejackets and watching people drown is... good? > Likewise, by being poor, doesn't mean you are good. No, but the death sentence of drowning perhaps should be given elsewhere.

by IanCal 3y ago

DeathArrow 3y ago

So, rich people are bad human beings, for not wanting to help others. Someone really are. But some did help others and are continuing to do so. Just by being rich, doesn't mean you are bad. Likewise, by being poor, doesn't mean you are good.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
fireflash38 3y ago
Corporations in a lot of ways are just diffusions of responsibility. They are also diffusions of culpability. I like to think that the best way to determine culpability for crimes/misdeeds of a corporation is by pay scale, including total benefits. So the CEO earning 200x the common worker at a company bears 200x the culpability of a worker. Billionaires have amassed an astounding quantity of wealth. I'd be very interested to see how much of that wealth was "earned" by actions, how much was grown based purely off capital investments, and how much in total that can trace its roots to dirty money (earned by underpaying, skirting regulations, negative externalities, other questionably legal activity). Do they have any responsibility for that?
- Jensson 3y ago
  > I like to think that the best way to determine culpability for crimes/misdeeds of a corporation is by pay scale, including total benefits. So the CEO earning 200x the common worker at a company bears 200x the culpability of a worker. Then you should also argue that the CEO gets 200x the credit for all the good things companies does, and then they are clearly in the green and a massive benefit to society. > Corporations in a lot of ways are just diffusions of responsibility. They are also diffusions of culpability. So are governments, just that governments are way larger and therefore way better at hiding things. The biggest pro for governments is that they are less efficient, so they are better at not making things worse in fields where private corporations would try to make things worse as efficiently as possible like healthcare or education. You need some extremely hardworking and creative people to come up with the American healthcare system, a government would have a hard time inventing something like that.
IanCal 3y ago
> Just by being rich, doesn't mean you are bad. Hoarding lifejackets and watching people drown is... good? > Likewise, by being poor, doesn't mean you are good. No, but the death sentence of drowning perhaps should be given elsewhere.