> Gel wrote: > Gruss is saying that Capitalism = Greed. Capitalism is good and the > only viable economic model, and therefore Greed and all that goes with > it is good. > > Gruss also believes that any form of government beside a laissez Faire > Capitalist Democracy is wrong. >
Rule #1 of these discussions that you let me tell you what I believe. Ask questions if you like, but don't tell me what I believe. Here's what I believe: 1.) Nobody on this planet is immune from greed. 2.) People can and do put other's needs before their own. We all do it quite often, but not often enough to trust that we will always do it if we came to power. 3.) Any socio-economic system that trusts its rulers/leaders/law makers to rule selflessly will fail. Here's what I remember from history class: * We tried the king deal. Guess what? Didn't work. Turns out that, sure, you can get a good king for awhile but then a bad one comes along and fecks everything up (for greed, power, and chicks. not in that order). * We tried the socialist thing. Doesn't work. see above. So, yeah, I think it's foolhardy to think that any system that doesn't assume it's rulers are greedy, selfish, and power hungry will succeed. It won't. There's thousands of years of experiments to back that up. And, yes, I think the most benevolent system ever invented is capitalism. It's egalitarian and provides freedom and rule of law by its very nature. But sure there's plenty of room for improvement. In a capitalist society, Gel is free to give up his PS2 and instead spend that money on the poor. He's free to give his club money and his car to the needy. He can ask the homeless to live with him. He can adopt abandoned children, volunteer at the hospital, or become a special needs teacher. But Gel doesn't do any of those things because he's greedy. Making sanctimonious speeches about me helps him to forget that doesn't practice what he preaches. For me, I'll earn the money to pay for the hospital via taxes. And I'll be honest about my greed. And I'll remember that when I get my custom exhaust installed next week I'll have paid for Brent Labree's meals. And the installer will use my money to pay for his kid's ski trip. And the ski resort will pay the salaries of the college students that work there who'll use the money to educate themselves. And the professors at the college will use the money to ... .... and soon we'll all be wealthy. But let's at least be honest about our greed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:191268 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
