Gotta love capitalism!

Post Reply New Topic

Oh the wonders of laissez-faire capitalism!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJyjNiL4zZg[/youtube]
"Don't give me this crap about following orders, somebody grap a frikkin hose and be a human being!"

You missed the other, equally sarcastic thread: http://www.wrongplanet.net/postt139702.html

You are right. oops.

In a real capitalist system there would have been ten competing fire departments each offering emergency sign-up for a premium.

ruveyn

Who are you kidding? There's no money to be made in firefighting - just think of the insurance premiums and worker's comp claims alone.

There needs more capital in the market for others to start rival departments.

Sounds like a need for more inflation.

*is aware of my Goldman Sachs avatar as I post this*

Well, capitalism is fine. To what extent your economy is mixed is another thing. By which I mean, some things need to be in the public sector and some need to be in the private sector. Fire services are an example of something which needs to be in the public sector for reasons just like this. Same with police, health care, etc. Such essential services shouldn't be private companies.

It's the same as health or crime fighting: it's a lossy industry. There is no profit to be made other than how much society benefits from its presence which means that it should be in the public sector and given money according to the needs.

Indeed.

Some lossy industry. The drug companies make fortunes. The doctors are rich. I would love to suffer losses like this. People will pay a great deal to be cured of their ills.

ruveyn

Mortality rates are going up, infancy moratlity rates are going up, the quality of healthcare is going down. Some people are making money from it; but, in general, it's still bad for society.

You are confusing the commercial relationships of a single entity with the larger public good of assuring universal access to health care.

On a fee for service basis, of course there is a commercial interest in providing health care--but the capacity of consumers to pay for health care is dramatically smaller than the number of consumers who benefit from health care, and the public good that derives from universal access to health care is, like education, disproportional to the public cost in provding it.

The "public good" is a mental fantasy. The bucks in the bank are spendable and can be used to acquire observable material things and useful services. There is no Public Good. There is My Good, Your Good and His Good.

ruveyn

Symantic gymnastics.

Public good may not be easily defined, but waving it away as fantasy is intellectually dishonest. It's a pretty simple concept.

Each of our individual goods are often at odds with each others. What is a public good that everyone in the society considers good. Can you name or list these?

It is not semantics. It is attention paid to facts and details. God and the Devil live in the details.

ruveyn

A system of consistent public law to which all individuals are required to adhere.
--We all benefit from the law that says that theft is wrong. This protects my property, your property and their property.

A system for the enforcement of private law.
--There is no value in you and I establishing a contract if neither of us has the means by which to ensure the compliance of the other.

A system of currency that provides a medium of exchange in which commercial transactions can be measured.
--What's the good of my patients paying me in potatoes and chickens if I cannot then get someone to sell me a house in exchange for those?

A system of education that ensures all children are provided the opportunity to develop skills that will enable them to participate in the economy, and permit the economy to innovate with a work force that is capable of adaptation.
--Economic growth depends upon innovation. What's the use of inventing the compressor driven nail gun if the carpenter is able to use nothing more complicated than a hammer?

A system of health care that ensures that all individuals have access to primary care facilities and providers in order to mitigate preventable deaths.
--A society in which the workforce is healthy and well educated is a society in which business can thrive. It is a society in which investors can place their capital. It is a society in which all members have a better life chances.