Who Does No Work, Shall Not Eat

Justin Schwartz jkschw at hotmail.com
Fri Jan 18 21:29:57 PST 2002



>
>Moreover: who gets to decide what work is? Is household work in
>your own home work? Care for your own children? Making dinner?
>
>Let's face the reality here: everybody works; some people get paid
>for it.
>

Not everyone works. And not everyone works productively in a socially useful and necessary way that contributes to the well-being of others. Isn't that the problem with capitalists?

If you try to sell to working people the idea that you should be given a decent living because you wash your own dishes and make your own bed, while they have to make widgets in a factory, they will laugh at you. Obviosuly there is a political struggle to be engaed in about expanding our notion of socially necesasry labor. In particular, it has to be expanded to include what has been traditioinally regarded as women's work that is unpaid in a capitalist market economy. But even there, I don't think that most people, including most women, are likely to think that anyone should be excused from a role in doing burdensome work that others have to do.

I realize this is harsh. But it is a harsh world. We don't live in the Big Rock Candy Mountain. And it's not fair that some of us should have to sweat and others eat grapes at their expense. People won't stand for it. There has to be an expectation that every able bodied person does his or her share. Socialism has no place for goof-offs and parasites. Hopefully there will be less necesasry work for each when it is better shared. But what there is, has to be done, and it has to beshared fairly. I really don't see your problem with this. Or are you willing to support my preference for body building on Venice Beach while you wash bottles at the local diner? I don't thinks o.

jks

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