I think it is just wrong to assume that social security exists because people are so good in their hearts and like being taken advantage of. Probably many (the majority) thinks so, but in reality, it is simply a form of insurance. Also, I pay up to keep the beggars and robbers off the street. That is a purely selfish reason - I think solid political systems should be based on selfishness.
Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
11–20 of 45 posts
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#12Earlier quoted context omitted.
Or, the deficit created by people who believed financial instruments of service economy is a better route ahead than genuinely productive society.
What are you talking about? The structural deficit in its present form existed prior to 2008, therefore anyone who says it was caused by the bank bailout is trying to pull the wool over your eyes. What was the deficit in 1997?
Reliance on the finance sector existed before 2008, how that contradicts what I say?
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#13I think it is just wrong to assume that social security exists because people are so good in their hearts and like being taken advantage of. Probably many (the majority) thinks so, but in reality, it is simply a form of insurance. Also, I pay up to keep the beggars and robbers off the street. That is a purely selfish reason - I think solid political systems should be based on selfishness.
"I think solid political systems should be based on selfishness."
This can't work, because there's no end in selfishness. If you're more selfish than others, than you will have an advantage, as long the others are a bit less selfish.
At the end selfishness harms itself.
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#14America has better http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_mobility
But the article states at the bottom that "the USA fairs very poorly when compared to European countries".
And the Guardian showed the USA does worse than most OECD economies:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/mar/10/oecd-uk-worst...
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#15Earlier quoted context omitted.
What are you talking about? The structural deficit in its present form existed prior to 2008, therefore anyone who says it was caused by the bank bailout is trying to pull the wool over your eyes. What was the deficit in 1997?
Reliance on the finance sector existed before 2008, how that contradicts what I say?
Oh I see, you are asserting that services aren't "real" economic activity. That's not actually true. It is true that the financial services sector accounts for a higher proportion of our economy than it does in other EU countries (still less than 10%). But it's also true that it is far more diverse than just subprime mortgages, and also true that most of its revenues are earned overseas.
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#16Earlier quoted context omitted.
Reliance on the finance sector existed before 2008, how that contradicts what I say?
Oh I see, you are asserting that services aren't "real" economic activity. That's not actually true. It is true that the financial services sector accounts for a higher proportion of our economy than it does in other EU countries (still less than 10%). But it's also true that it is far more diverse than just subprime mortgages, and also true that most of its revenues are earned overseas.
Sorry for not being clear enough.
No, services are indeed an economic activity. Just that I don't see service reliant economies as sustainable in the long term. They are all in debt, and always were working into debt, unlike traditional industrial societies, which have better track record. And along those lines, it is unfair to complain about high degree of welfare dependency: not everyone can work in the City, and there's only so much pipework to be fixed for plumbers.
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#17I think it is just wrong to assume that social security exists because people are so good in their hearts and like being taken advantage of. Probably many (the majority) thinks so, but in reality, it is simply a form of insurance. Also, I pay up to keep the beggars and robbers off the street. That is a purely selfish reason - I think solid political systems should be based on selfishness.
" Also, I pay up to keep the beggars and robbers off the street."
More social programs just create a lower class that has a lifetime dependence on the government for money. It also doesn't seem to lower the crime rate. Detroit is a good example of this. There were more social programs and money pumped into that city than any other, yet the murder rate is #2 in the US.
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#18I remember the first time I worked out that life's not fair. There's no over-arching justice to ensure that just because someone beats be at one thing they won't beat me at another. Nature as a whole has no sense of fair play. The best you can do is get on with life. Having said that, if you treat people well you often find that their sense of fair play gives you a safety net. But always remember: "Life is pain, high…
Fair is an agreement between two people who like each other. Of course life isn't fair, but it's not unfair either. The function just won't evaluate with life as an argument.
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#19Earlier quoted context omitted.
Oh I see, you are asserting that services aren't "real" economic activity. That's not actually true. It is true that the financial services sector accounts for a higher proportion of our economy than it does in other EU countries (still less than 10%). But it's also true that it is far more diverse than just subprime mortgages, and also true that most of its revenues are earned overseas.
Sorry for not being clear enough. No, services are indeed an economic activity. Just that I don't see service reliant economies as sustainable in the long term. They are all in debt, and always were working into debt, unlike traditional industrial societies, which have better track record. And along those lines, it is unfair to complain about high degree of welfare dependency: not everyone can work in the City, and t…
Oh, I wasn't talking about welfare dependency, but about the public sector. New Labour added a million people to the payroll; they aren't all nurses and firemen. Similarly vastly expanded higher education with degree courses that proved to be useless in the job market.
Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.
#20Earlier quoted context omitted.
Oh I see, you are asserting that services aren't "real" economic activity. That's not actually true. It is true that the financial services sector accounts for a higher proportion of our economy than it does in other EU countries (still less than 10%). But it's also true that it is far more diverse than just subprime mortgages, and also true that most of its revenues are earned overseas.
Sorry for not being clear enough. No, services are indeed an economic activity. Just that I don't see service reliant economies as sustainable in the long term. They are all in debt, and always were working into debt, unlike traditional industrial societies, which have better track record. And along those lines, it is unfair to complain about high degree of welfare dependency: not everyone can work in the City, and t…
I'm afraid I don't see where you have successfully linked service-reliant economies with debt. There may be a correlation - I haven't looked at the data, but is A a cause of B?