Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it. • Hacker News Board

Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.

#41

Post by rdtsc » Fri, Aug 06, 2010, 10:28 PM UTC

valkyrja wrote: post #40

rdtsc wrote: post #23

Life is not fair objectively but there is the belief that it _ought_ to be fair. That makes a big difference. It is part of the common sense protocol of interacting with people. _Most_ people will assume that life ought to be fair, they also assume that others assume the same thing. This belief in fairness can be exploited by sociopaths and those who end up in power. Of course, one can argue they ended up in a positi…

It is interesting how for such a Christian nation, America has such a harsh penal system -- one would expect all those Christians to just let the criminals be punished in the afterlife. It's not really that surprising. If I'm not wrong, the range of offenses in America included "sins" like idolatry, blasphemy and witchcraft. Society reflects on what gets a man into prison. Religious judgment has had something to say…

I guess the point is that it indirectly reflects the hypocrisy and highlights the lack of faith in the religious beliefs for those who profess them. In other words, the extreme expected outcome would be to either forgive, or to not forgive and let afterlife take care of delivering the just reward or punshment. Neither one of those choices should result in severe punishment for criminals just for the sake of revenge.

> Believing that a christian nation wouldn't be able to have such a harsh penal system is naive at its best.

I do not actually believe that. I was arguing more as a logic exercize, to highlight the inherent inconsistency and hypocricy in how the judicial and legal system is setup vis-a-vis the prevalent religious beliefs in this country.

Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.

#42

Post by Tichy » Fri, Aug 06, 2010, 10:44 PM UTC

rick888 wrote: post #17

Tichy wrote: post #11

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.

" 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.

Social programs are not the same thing as social insurance. I am happy to live in a country where the amount of violence that seems to be normal in the US is still inconceivable.

Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.

#43

Post by Tichy » Fri, Aug 06, 2010, 10:48 PM UTC

gaius wrote: post #9

RiderOfGiraffes wrote: post #2

I 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 "if you don't work you don't eat" but that isn't what people actually want...

So it is fair if some people are born as slaves and some as masters? Or how is your statement to be interpreted? It could mean that somebody earning fuck you money is not fair, because then that person would not have to work to eat anymore.

Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.

#44

Post by gaius » Sat, Aug 07, 2010, 7:47 AM UTC

Tichy wrote: post #43

gaius wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Fair" is "if you don't work you don't eat" but that isn't what people actually want...

So it is fair if some people are born as slaves and some as masters? Or how is your statement to be interpreted? It could mean that somebody earning fuck you money is not fair, because then that person would not have to work to eat anymore.

Not sure how you extrapolated that! But it is true that if the average person does not create more wealth than they consume, your society is eating its seed corn. Why shouldn't there be a requirement that everyone pulls their weight?

The modern-day leftie has forgotten that Marx also said from each according to his ability.

Re: Life's unfair? Do something Or just get used to it.

#45

Post by confuzatron » Mon, Aug 09, 2010, 10:55 AM UTC

varjag wrote: post #22

confuzatron wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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?

I've seen no half-decent model of wealth creation in service economies. It's the equivalent of dark matter in modern economics, and all attempts at it I've seen end up in explaining away why the accumulating debt is not an issue. If you know of a good one, please point me to it. I would like to be proven wrong here, and educate myself. Service economy sounds wrong superficially, and doesn't have clear, satisfactory e…

OK, it appears that we both lack any argument to back up our positions, but my position is 'Hmmm. I don't know about that'. I feel like I'm more justified in taking my position than you are in taking yours. :)