[lbo-talk] cushy life/strict equality

Bill Bartlett billbartlett at dodo.com.au
Wed Jan 26 13:11:48 PST 2005


At 11:29 AM -0800 26/1/05, andie nachgeborenen wrote:


>I flat out don't think
>that it answers this problem to say that people would
>just want to do their best out of a spirit of
>camaraderie and socialist solidarity. Some would.
>And they would resent the hell out the goof-offs --
>even if they were only, say 10% of the population --
>who didn't. It;s hard to believe that people who don't
>get this point have ever worked in a real job or lived
>in a family.

By "real" job, you mean a job that one does only because one would otherwise be denied the necessities of life? Have you ever worked in a team of volunteers, who do their best simply out of a spirit of camaraderie? Never mind the socialist solidarity, most of the people who do it aren't socialists, simply ordinary human beings. Some of them are even capitalists, demonstrating that unearned income doesn't necessarily lead people to become idle parasites.

And this happens in the environment of capitalism, where we are all poisoned by prevailing social climate. Fundamental human nature prevailing even under the most adverse of conditions. Of course the people most likely to volunteer their labour are most likely to be those who have not been too deeply scarred, and don't have to sacrifice too much. Usually.

But to suggest that it goes against human nature is contradicted by the evidence. Humans are social animals, sharing and co-operation are in our genes.

Bill Bartlett Bracknell Tas



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