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You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

churchlifejournal.nd.edu

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Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#101

Post by throwanem »

billfruit wrote: post #80

How is then of the possible recent and ongoing attempts to reform the capitalist system like the gig economy, use of automation to make manual labour obsolete, rise of a democratized social media, disruptive innovation etc seem to have more stronger opposition from the left rather than the right, esp in the USA. Many on the left seem to deeply in favour of preserving the status quo, and seems to not have the means or…

A leftist would say that's because neoliberalism, despite having the word "liberal" in its name, is at best a center-right ideology, and would be very surprised at your assertion that leftists want to preserve the broken status quo.

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#102

Post by tomrod »

ghastmaster wrote: post #82

The term Neoliberalism attributed to post 1980 political figures is appropriate in that they tout themselves as classical liberal(hayek,mises,etc.) ideals proponents, but in reality they do not apply or conform to classical liberal ideals. The author does not understand that classical liberal interpretations of economics is an explanation of markets underlying principles. Reading mises, hayek, etc. Is akin to reading…

My takeaway as well.

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#103

Post by dangus »

hudibras wrote: post #94
tomrod wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100% agree. Flowery prose has its place, but an article calling on a return to traditionalism and denouncing the benefits of neoliberalism isn't it. Doubly on-the-nose is that the article would be inaccessible to many due to being steeped in elitism.

>the article would be inaccessible to many due to being steeped in elitism. Inaccessible to who exactly?

At least 43% of the population:

https://nces.ed.gov/NAAL/kf_demographics.asp

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#104

Post by SolaceQuantum »

mdorazio wrote: post #90
xvector wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How should one go about doing this?

Realistically, most people can't and/or shouldn't do this by building a business or working at a startup. Both of these are very risky and won't generally accomplish what I think the parent comment implies. Instead, the more reliable way is to invest as much of your income as you reasonably can in securities like stocks and bonds so that over time you are indeed making money doing nothing. Also, if your company offer…

How does the reasoning of buying stocks and bonds work over time given the current crisis has wiped out all the gains for many people made in the past several years utilizing this strategy, and before that was 2008 which did the same?

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#105

Post by factsaresacred »

buran77 wrote: post #72
factsaresacred wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nothing revelatory but it's the truth. Anybody seeking more freedom ought to attempt to build a system that generates revenue without your presence being required. Investing, swing trading and software are the most straightforward paths. Software particularly. A couple thousand hours of sweat, toil and despair and you might just create a perpetual cashflow generating machine.

> Investing, swing trading But who "generates" those assets you are investing in or trading? Will the action of investing or trading generate them? The cycle must start somewhere. > Software particularly. A couple thousand hours of sweat, toil and despair and you might just create a perpetual cashflow generating machine. Perpetual may be a strong word no? Your software will need attention, improvement, etc., its valu…

> But who "generates" those assets you are investing in or trading?

This is irrelevant to the individual. The cycle already exists.

> Perpetual may be a strong word no?

Yes, I'm being slightly facetious. But the possibility of a creating a money-making asset that is unpegged from a 40 hour work week is very real.

Of course there's still work to do but the work is invested in an asset that you own rather than being rented out to an employer. This makes all the difference.

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#106

Post by hudibras »

Here's the paragraph that's making everyone mad:

>Like the student and other forms of personal debt that prepare undergraduates to say two words—“Yes, boss”—the ideal of the entrepreneurial self serves a fundamentally disciplinary function: reinforcing the precarious nature of work in today’s digitalized, low-wage, precariously employed, and increasingly automated capitalism, one in which you are casually expendable and which places a premium on everlasting metamorphosis: upgrade your skills, your profile, your resume. But don’t worry, complain, or God help you, call a union: losing your job or seeing your skill set rendered obsolescent is an opportunity for “growth,” creativity, empowerment. When your own exploitation can be recast as a project rather than a problem—a source of fulfillment rather than an instance of injustice—then solidarity with others can be vilified as conformism, the herd instinct of normies, the last refuge of losers and mediocrities.

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#107

Post by billfruit »

throwanem wrote: post #101
billfruit wrote: post #80

How is then of the possible recent and ongoing attempts to reform the capitalist system like the gig economy, use of automation to make manual labour obsolete, rise of a democratized social media, disruptive innovation etc seem to have more stronger opposition from the left rather than the right, esp in the USA. Many on the left seem to deeply in favour of preserving the status quo, and seems to not have the means or…

A leftist would say that's because neoliberalism, despite having the word "liberal" in its name, is at best a center-right ideology, and would be very surprised at your assertion that leftists want to preserve the broken status quo.

Yes but left seems more critical of change/possibility of change than the right.

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#108

Post by tomrod »

clarry wrote: post #76
netfl0 wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is not true. It is a metaphor for generic work.

Did you interview the author? I'd like to read that.

That particular priest of the priestly class seeking to justify their predation of their bronze-age neighbors is probably dead. So, unfortunately, we are only left with their hagiographal and/or mythical prose.

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#109

Post by foldr »

Retric wrote: post #98
foldr wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think so. It's chosen because it reflects a particular attitude towards the working classes. (The hoi polloi don't call themselves the hoi polloi.) It's also not in any way an obscure phrase. In the UK at least it's in common usage.

Coded language attempts to convey ideas through subtext. By doing so it’s reducing the carrying capacity of the information channel and lets authors pad words without adding meaning. That’s more or less the definition of lazy writing. Like a kid starting off with “It was a dark and stormy night...”

It’s coded only in the sense that you have to know what the words mean to understand what the author is saying. Any piece of writing is “coded” in that sense. Choosing to write in a plodding, completely literal style also conveys a subtext.

I'm not sure why you refer to “padding”. “Hoi polloi” is just as concise as any of its less flavorful synomyms (e.g. “common people”). The use of this phrase actually makes the piece more concise, as it removes the need to explicitly indicate the (already fairly obvious) attitudes of the upper classes to the people below them. Some things are significant enough to be worth indicating but not important enough to be worth mentioning.

If you aren’t familiar with “hoi polloi” (and again, it's not actually a very obscure phrase at all!), it takes a few seconds to look it up in a dictionary.

https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hoi%20polloi

Re: You're a Slave to Money, Then You Die

#110

Post by saltyfever »

netfl0 wrote: post #61
saltyfever wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Gensis is talking about farmers working the land for food. Modern work is an invention of man built on top of it, it's a degenerate replica in terms of satisifcation, necessity, meaning etc. It's not the same story. Edit: I'd like to see the downvoters argue against the notion that some work is more essential than other work. Hasn't the COVID-19 crisis opened your eyes to this reality?

That is not true. It is a metaphor for generic work.

"By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground"?

It was talking about honest, real work.

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