On Wed, 1 Mar 2000, Sunder wrote:
> So then, what's the answer? Capitalism or Crapunism under anarchy? :)
Dunno .. but I sort of suspect that if we could pull off a true anarchy
that it wouldn't matter much.
Individuals could clump together and institute whatever sort of
socio-economic system they like that suits their individual tastes and
interests. A Hasidic Jew Communist community here, a Muslim Capitalism
there .. as long as each group were allowed autonomy and self-government
and as long as each individual in the group were afforded the same respect
(by definition of anarchy) then, we have at an individual level the same
thing we have at a national level now .. and capitalist nations
trade freely with communist nations all the time.
In the end, evolution decides.
> > That is where we fundamentally depart. I recognize that I am not
> > responsible for other's downfall .. but I still make an attempt to help
> > them out.
>
> Help them out yes. As long as that's what YOU WANT to do. Being forced to
> help them out at gun point, isn't the right way.
I agree. We're really talking taxes here.
>
> > I'm not in favor of mandatory taxes in general, let alone taking your
> > money for a program you don't believe in.
> >
> > I'd prefer a tax system in which you pay whatever sum you feel is
> > appropriate, and delegate what sorts of programs your money goes to.
>
> Then it isn't a tax, it's a voluntary charity. When it becomes forced, it
> becomes theft. So in reality, you're not for taxes that pay for social
> programs, you're for charity collections that fund social programs. Well, why
> didn't you say so in the first place? It's like pulling teeth!
I didn't want to open up a whole other can of worms and begin a critique
of our tax system. Especially on this list, where we are all likely to
have .. uhm .. very vibrant opinions about taxes :)
And, I not so much for general charity collections because I do like the
idea of the government funding social programs -- but I don't like the
idea of mandatory taxation.
I think it is possible for the government to make money without
taxation, and I like the idea of some of that money going to serve the
people.
That is why I didn't go into it .. I didn't want to get into the hows and
whats of government spending, etc.
> > That would sort of be what my vision of taxation would be. In the mean
> > time, I'd rather work toward tax reform than not help those in need.
>
> Why not work to just abolish taxes in the first place?
Love to! Lets do it today. Damn. Taxes are still here, aren't they?
Like I said, in the mean time .. if I'm going to be taxed anyhow, I'd
rather it go to social programs.
> Not entirely. Linux and *BSD are kicking Microsoft's ass. You won't see it
> because Microsoft has more advertising dollars. But it's still reality. And
> the more Microsoft does to make their OS fascist (forced registration, privacy
> invasion, security holes), the more they'll lose. Mom and Pop aren't running
> Linux yet, but that's because they don't know any better.
> Still, I know a guy
> whose *grandfather* picked up a Linux CD from a Pee Cee magazine and installed
> it. He was a lot happier with Linux as it crashed less than 95.
Yeah. I know a few older folks who run Linux with KDE rather than 95, but
the only things they do with the computer is run netscape and play
simple games.
But such users were never locked into MS to begin with .. they don't
need MS-centric technology .. things could be different:
If public key systems were invented (and patented) five years into the
future, Linux would have a big problem on its hands. I'm thinking about
e-commerce. The patent holders could enforce their rights in a way that
prevents free software usage, and then MS has a huge advantage over Linux
because Linux simply can't get an e-commerce solution together in such
a scenario .. and MS can afford any licensing it needs. As luck would have
it, large scale e-commerce isn't here yet, and the PK patents are expiring.
Michael J. Graffam ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
"Let your life be a counter-friction to stop the machine."
Henry David Thoreau "Civil Disobedience"
