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Tenchusatsu
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Portland, OR (rolling and very rainy)
Feb 2001 time: 05:13
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Year 2149 to Walt.
_______
Fallacies of a Free Market Part I
... coming soon!!!
[This message has been edited by Tenchusatsu (edited April 11, 2001).]
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Walt
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Louisville, KY, USA
Jan 2001 time: 05:13
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Heh.
2149 to cbn
________
CEO Walt could hear the market crashing from the open window on the 101st floor of Morgan Tower. Briefly he was tempted... But, he'd stuck it out for 48 years. He could last another 48, or another 480.
"Rachel, call Commander De Sade. It's time for another round of Nerve Stapling..."
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Tenchusatsu
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Portland, OR (rolling and very rainy)
Feb 2001 time: 05:13
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Year 2150 to Walt.
_______
Fallacies of a Free Market, Part I
"Greed Is Not Good"
Deirdre Skye
One of the motivating factors behind the participants of a Free Market Economy is the desire for profit. History has shown that the profit motive is a powerful driving force in the progress of a society. Yet, if left unchecked, that same motive can become a powerful yet deadly narcotic, destroying the environment while the populace remains asleep in a false paradise of increased wealth, power, and knowledge.
The harm a Free Market economy does on the environment cannot be overstressed. The profit motive demands that the costs of production must be minimized in order to maximize the return on investment. Sadly, this often calls for neglecting proper environmental safeguards, such as those which minimize pollution. Moreover, conservation of natural resources is also ignored, and cries from environmentalists are dismissed as extremist by those addicted to cheap goods, soaring wealth, and increased luxury. Then by the time the natural resources are depleted in one territory, the Free Marketeers simply move on to the next territory to deflower and pillage. What they leave behind are wastelands.
Such forces were major contributors to the death of Old Earth in the late 21st century. Free-market capitalism became the de facto standard for the new global economy which emerged in the late 20th century. This economy then led to long-term environmental destruction. This in turn led to a collapse of the global economy as the quality of life rapidly deteriorated and major riots erupted against governments, corporations, and other institutions seen as responsible for the worldwide disorder. Then the wars came, and only by the good will of great Gaia did even a small fraction of humankind escape here to Alpha Centauri.
This alone should be enough to discourage any society from adopting a Free Market Economy again. Yet there are other reasons ...
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Walt
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Louisville, KY, USA
Jan 2001 time: 05:13
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2150 to cbn.
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Tenchusatsu
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Portland, OR (rolling and very rainy)
Feb 2001 time: 05:13
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Good thing, too. It gives me a chance to work on my computer. I took a lot of parts out to build a computer for someone else, and I'm waiting for some parts to come in Friday.
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Tenchusatsu
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Portland, OR (rolling and very rainy)
Feb 2001 time: 05:13
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Year 2151 to Walt.
_______
Fallacies of a Free Market, Part II
"The Poor Don't Just Get Poorer, They Get Screwed"
One of the inevitable consequences of a Free Market economy is its favoritism toward the strong. This makes sense in a purely theoretical sense, because free market economics dictates that those best able to manage and utilize the resources of a society should have control over them. But more often than not, this leads to a widening rift between the rich and poor, the strong and the weak. Those with the money and the power will inevitably exploit their control over the common folk, leading to unhappiness among the common masses. Eventually the commoners will get so fed up, they revolt, and no amount of police protection will be able to help.
_______
You guys know about the protests at the free trade summit in Quebec? Seems like the Free Market nations of this world need to increase their Psych allocation, huh?
_______
Let's set a tentative date for the next TCP/IP session. How about two weeks from now, Saturday May 5th or Sunday May 6th?
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Walt
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Louisville, KY, USA
Jan 2001 time: 05:13
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2151 to cbn.
___
No can do that weekend, I'll be out of town. In fact, I'm going to be gone from the 2nd to the 8th. I /may/ be able to keep playing via pbem during that time, but I'm not sure. I'll keep you guys updated.
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Walt
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Louisville, KY, USA
Jan 2001 time: 05:13
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I have most of this Saturday, the 28th, available for tcp/ip. I know cbn will be gone in the afternoon. Is there any chance we could play earlier in the day? This would be a hardship only for Tench, who's on the West Coast. Whaddya say, Tench? How devoted a fanatic are you? Wanna get up at 5:00? *grin*
Okay, it's looking impractical... Nevertheless, since I had the day free, I wanted to let you guys know.
I have most of the previous day, the 27th, free as well, although my late afternoon is booked.
Walt
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Tenchusatsu
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Portland, OR (rolling and very rainy)
Feb 2001 time: 05:13
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How about Saturday, May 12th, guys?
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knowhow2
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of the World
Feb 2001 time: 06:13
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may 12th works for me..... if and only if we decide for this right away, because if we leave it hanging something else might come up and then the priority thing comes in between..... so we have 3-4 days tops to set the day for play or not.
,,,,,,,,,
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Walt
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Louisville, KY, USA
Jan 2001 time: 05:13
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I'm afraid I'm committed to work on the 12th... I think it's nights, though. We could play for a few hours in the afternoon, same schedule as before. I should be available from 14:00 CST, 15:00 Apolyton time, but could only go until 17:00 CST, 18:00 Apolyton time.
Walt
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Walt
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Louisville, KY, USA
Jan 2001 time: 05:13
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2152 to cbn.
___
Works for me, although I'll be working that night. If it's agreeable to everyone else, we can start at 14:00 my time, that's 15:00 Apolyton time. I believe that's one hour earlier than our scheduled start time on our last tcp/ip occasion. I'll have to stop playing shortly after 17:00 CST, 18:00 EST/Apolyton time.
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Tenchusatsu
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Portland, OR (rolling and very rainy)
Feb 2001 time: 05:13
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Year 2153 to Walt.
_______
Fallacies of a Free Market, Part III
"Delusions of Grandeur"
One aspect of every Free Market economy is a general stock exchange. By letting average people with money buy shares of corporations, the theory is that everyone (that is, anyone with money to spare) can partake in the profit-taking, and the risk of investment is spread across many people instead of a few.
However, history has told us time and time again how the stock market turns into nothing but a grand Ponzi scheme. Euphoria often drives stock prices up, and every shareholder feels she or he has made money. But of course, no money is really made until shares are actually sold, and when people need to convert "imaginary" money into real money, the resulting sell-off erases the so-called gains, and only the speculators end up making money off of those who sold too late.
There are many examples of stock market crashes throughout the history of Old Earth. The crash of 1929 was significant because it was the first, but the biggest by far came in 2010. That was when global energy prices spiked tremendously (which itself was caused in no small part by free market exploitation of natural resources), causing stock markets all around the globe to collapse and never recover again.
_______
OK, direct-connect session #2:
Date: Saturday, May 12th
Apolyton Time: 15:00
Tenchusatsu Time: 12:00
Walt Time: 14:00
cbn Time: 15:30
knowhow2 Time: 21:00
Everyone agree to these times? Can't wait!
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All times are GMT. The time now is 05:13. Apolyton Time is 00:13. |
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