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And yet too much zero sum thinking leads to a crabs in a bucket mentality were the greedy get less by being greedy instead of having an educated productive soci

by pixl97 8mo ago

And yet too much zero sum thinking leads to a crabs in a bucket mentality were the greedy get less by being greedy instead of having an educated productive society around them.

bpt3 8mo ago
A large portion (I think it's the majority, but would be happy to be wrong) of our fellow man is a net loss to society, with some smaller percentage being a significant drain. Giving more and more resources to those people does not make them magically more educated, productive, or congenial. So it's not a "crabs in a bucket" mentality in that the greedy (which I assume means the wealthy here, as they're the ones funding the public system in the US specifically and the western world for the most part) are trying to keep the lower classes beneath them, it's that they are not interested in wasting their resources to no meaningful end other than increased consumption of low quality or worse goods and services.
- pixl97 8mo ago
  Correct, and I'm sure when you become the arbiter of who is or isn't worthy that you won't put those like you at the top.
  - bpt3 8mo ago
    I don't have to, or want to, put anyone anywhere. In a meritocracy, it will sort itself out, which is what I would prefer.
lII1lIlI11ll 8mo ago
> And yet too much zero sum thinking leads to a crabs in a bucket mentality were the greedy get less by being greedy instead of having an educated productive society around them. These are just your biases. Take Switzerland as an example - it doesn't have any of lefty fetishes OP mentioned ("cheap food, free universal healthcare, free public transport") yet it is highly educated, productive and leaves the door open for people who want to work hard and get ahead to do so.
- pixl97 8mo ago
  Heh, we have cities bigger than Switzerland. Trying to use any particular small area without averaging out human behavior is silly because the model will fail.

by pixl97 8mo ago

And yet too much zero sum thinking leads to a crabs in a bucket mentality were the greedy get less by being greedy instead of having an educated productive society around them.

bpt3 8mo ago

A large portion (I think it's the majority, but would be happy to be wrong) of our fellow man is a net loss to society, with some smaller percentage being a significant drain. Giving more and more resources to those people does not make them magically more educated, productive, or congenial. So it's not a "crabs in a bucket" mentality in that the greedy (which I assume means the wealthy here, as they're the ones funding the public system in the US specifically and the western world for the most part) are trying to keep the lower classes beneath them, it's that they are not interested in wasting their resources to no meaningful end other than increased consumption of low quality or worse goods and services.

pixl97 8mo ago
Correct, and I'm sure when you become the arbiter of who is or isn't worthy that you won't put those like you at the top.
- bpt3 8mo ago
  I don't have to, or want to, put anyone anywhere. In a meritocracy, it will sort itself out, which is what I would prefer.

lII1lIlI11ll 8mo ago

> And yet too much zero sum thinking leads to a crabs in a bucket mentality were the greedy get less by being greedy instead of having an educated productive society around them. These are just your biases. Take Switzerland as an example - it doesn't have any of lefty fetishes OP mentioned ("cheap food, free universal healthcare, free public transport") yet it is highly educated, productive and leaves the door open for people who want to work hard and get ahead to do so.

pixl97 8mo ago
Heh, we have cities bigger than Switzerland. Trying to use any particular small area without averaging out human behavior is silly because the model will fail.