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Once it was assumed that increased productivity would benefit the whole community, hence the expectation that productivity would lead to higher wages and/or red
by Johnythree 12y ago
Once it was assumed that increased productivity would benefit the whole community, hence the expectation that productivity would lead to higher wages and/or reduced working hours.
But that hasn't happened:
In the American version of Capitalism, any benefits from increased productivity flow direct to the super rich, leaving the poor and middle-class worse off.
Meanwhile, the European semi-socialist model is also rapidly being subverted by the American model.
- tbrownaw 12y agoI suspect you are using a definition for "capitalism" that's based on something other than having private ownership of capital.
- leereeves 12y agoThat's the view from the US and Europe, but the lives (or at least the incomes and energy consumption) of the poor in developing economies are improving. Perhaps the benefits of increased productivity in the developed world are simply being counter balanced by increased global competition and an equalization of lifestyles.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- logicchains 12y ago>increased productivity Isn't part of the problem that many university degrees don't really provide any such "productivity" increases? Things like communications, postmodern art history and gender studies, while possibly contributing to the intellectual development of students (assuming students don't just spend the whole course drinking), don't really increase students' ability to do or produce anything that other people value enough to pay for.
- kyllo 12y agoUniversity probably doesn't. Technology sure does.
- eruditely 12y agoThe super-rich seem much more concerned about the lives of the poor than the poor for each other.
- sjtrny 12y agoFair enough, they're too busy being poor to care about anyne else.
- XJOKOLAT 12y agostanding ovation However, it's not actually that fair enough. Some of the most generous spirited people I know are "poor".
- eruditely 12y agoIt's really weird seeing people talk about 'poor' people when you have friends/family in third world countries. I also have friends in both tails of the distribution and my statement definitely holds. No this is decidedly NOT anti-poor on my part. I definitely have a bleeding heart it was just a casual remark.
- switchbak 12y agoAre you sure about that? I've seen exactly the opposite, that the richer you are (typically), the less empathy you express. Bill Gates being a notable counterexample. Below a certain threshold, poverty is very damaging on a person, but nonetheless, I've seen many instances of poor people sharing what little they have. This is all anecdotal of course, but there are studies showing an inverse correlation of wealth to empathy.
- eruditely 12y agoGo to a place where there is real poverty and it still holds(like india). White rich people tend to care a lot about every one. I am not white.