What is the positive side to capitalism?
Capitalism promotes economic growth and gives people the incentive to work harder. This pursuit of success can bring around technological innovations. Capitalism is largely controlled by market forces, where the government is hypothetically less involved. It can also strengthen foreign relations through company controlled trading through the free market. It also lacks a centralized system of coordination so ideally everyone living in a capitalist society everyone works together and is not controlled by some higher power. Governmental manipulation of capitalism can result in market distortions such as shortages and surplus’, thus it is a system controlled largely by the citizens themselves.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
"I, Pencil"
“I, Pencil” HW
Summary: The background of products is carelessly overlooked by mankind, and if this persists, before long, our society will fall apart. There are “innumerable antecedents” that we know far to little about to be able to make a decision to buy a product. Nothing can be overlooked for each element in a products production is as significant as another. There is no-one in charge who actually knows where heir product, in its entirety, came from, and neither do the consumers who buy them so we do not have any right to use them. If one was aware of the origin of the products they so relish, then they would see why not to use them. Remove government obstacles and have faith that free people will make the right decisions.
Quotes: “Sadly, I am taken for granted by those who use me, as if I were a mere incident and without background. This supercilious attitude relegates me to the level of the commonplace. This is a species of the grievous error in which mankind cannot too long persist without peril.”
“The absence of a master-mind, of anyone dictating or forcibly directing these countless actions which bring me into being.”
“ If one is aware that these know-hows will naturally, yes, automatically arrange themselves into creative and productive patterns in response to human necessity and demand- that is in the absence of governmental or any other master-minding- then one will possess an absolutely essential ingredient for freedom: a faith in free people. Freedom is impossible without this faith.”
Analysis: At a glance I noticed the land labor and capital in this brief soliloquy. After reading it a second time, I noticed that it was condemning more than just capitalism, but government as well. This absence of any master-mind, any all knowing director of this process of product creation, show that no-one, not the owners, not the labor, not the consumer, knows of every collaborating element that leads to the creation of a product. If anyone was aware of all the blood, sweat tears, and corruption that goes into making a product they would certainly not buy it. Thinking about it further, I noticed that government creates obstacles that require us to use these products that we know nothing about. Fro example indecent exposure laws require us to wear clothing, and work and school force people to commute(cars, bicycles)> Having all these ideas thrown at me I saw that the pencil was describing anarchy, or total lack of government and market.
I apologize, this is more biased, I took the concept and applied it to my own opinions, I will make up this assignment.
Summary: The background of products is carelessly overlooked by mankind, and if this persists, before long, our society will fall apart. There are “innumerable antecedents” that we know far to little about to be able to make a decision to buy a product. Nothing can be overlooked for each element in a products production is as significant as another. There is no-one in charge who actually knows where heir product, in its entirety, came from, and neither do the consumers who buy them so we do not have any right to use them. If one was aware of the origin of the products they so relish, then they would see why not to use them. Remove government obstacles and have faith that free people will make the right decisions.
Quotes: “Sadly, I am taken for granted by those who use me, as if I were a mere incident and without background. This supercilious attitude relegates me to the level of the commonplace. This is a species of the grievous error in which mankind cannot too long persist without peril.”
“The absence of a master-mind, of anyone dictating or forcibly directing these countless actions which bring me into being.”
“ If one is aware that these know-hows will naturally, yes, automatically arrange themselves into creative and productive patterns in response to human necessity and demand- that is in the absence of governmental or any other master-minding- then one will possess an absolutely essential ingredient for freedom: a faith in free people. Freedom is impossible without this faith.”
Analysis: At a glance I noticed the land labor and capital in this brief soliloquy. After reading it a second time, I noticed that it was condemning more than just capitalism, but government as well. This absence of any master-mind, any all knowing director of this process of product creation, show that no-one, not the owners, not the labor, not the consumer, knows of every collaborating element that leads to the creation of a product. If anyone was aware of all the blood, sweat tears, and corruption that goes into making a product they would certainly not buy it. Thinking about it further, I noticed that government creates obstacles that require us to use these products that we know nothing about. Fro example indecent exposure laws require us to wear clothing, and work and school force people to commute(cars, bicycles)> Having all these ideas thrown at me I saw that the pencil was describing anarchy, or total lack of government and market.
I apologize, this is more biased, I took the concept and applied it to my own opinions, I will make up this assignment.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Other peoples opinions on the AWOL
What are other people’s perspectives of the American way of life?
To answer this question I interviewed several people, several strangers I picked randomly off the street, and a few people that I know personally. In order to put a perspective on the information and avoid nebulous speculation, I formed two groups in which these people fit, sadly it seems that in reality people are very polarized in what they find as important about the AWOL. There are those who look at the AWOL as a bigger picture and those who personalized the AWOL ( Live with the illusion of the American Way of life).
One of the first people I interviewed was a 50 or 60 year old, white, doorman. He seemed quite enamored with the American way of life, saying that it was essentially the ability to do whatever one wants. However, I have never heard of someone who dreamt of being a doorman when they grew up. Unless this man was the one exception and he really did dream of becoming a doorman as a child, his characterization of the AWOL exhibits a lack of large-scale thought. He also seemed fixated on the practical aspects of the AWOL in comparison to the larger picture. He seemed far more invested in his own personal wellbeing than that of the country he so readily supported.
Another person that I interviewed, a middle aged, Hispanic, working class man, with paint-covered clothing, followed suit with the doorman. In his opinion the AWOL is “working hard and being happy with your kids.” A very simple answer indeed, one can assume that this man has children (obviously) so he is most likely talking about his way of life. He continued on by saying, “I’m just thankful I got a job,” and the only bad aspect of America is that “it’s too expensive.” While cost is indeed an issue, there are certainly far more evident problems with our country. He was more concerned with his own economic affairs than the greater picture. Wealth certainly does allow one the leisure to speculate larger issues. When one is struggling just to get by as this man made it seem he was, time is spent on work instead of fervently trying to understand why things are the way they are.
On the other side of this societal rift, there are those who seemed to administer more thought to the subject. When asked “What is the AWOL?” a young, white, male answered mockingly, “A house on one acre, with a trophy wife and two kids.” He almost perfectly characterized the dream of the Hispanic man that I interviewed. His answer is also removed, he isn’t talking about himself, and is instead accurately looking at the greater picture. He continued by saying that “We can’t do what we really want. Nobody cares about your hopes and your dreams, you have to submit to society to get anywhere and go against your dreams in the process.” Becoming a doorman is a perfect example of this, even though that man said that one can do whatever they want, he submitted to the will of society because the painful truth is that the freedom that so many identify with America can only be achieved by working. The Hispanic man that I interviewed was “happy” just have a job while society taunts him with expensive nick nacks. Does American society really look out for these people, or does it just sucker people in with various distractions? This young mans answer to this question is far more thought out, his outlook actually applies to other people, whereas the other two men’s thoughts on the AWOL were almost convoluted and weren’t applicable to the overwhelming majority.
Lastly, I interviewed my own mother, a 51 year old, white, middle class, woman who also spoke broadly about the AWOL. She said, “Some people think we are entitled to a certain standard of living even at the cost of others, meaning other nations, and other feel that we aren’t justified in maintaining this state of entitlement.” She talked about other nations outside of the U.S., beyond herself, because the U.S. is not separate from world affairs as many would like to think. The effects of our actions and our government’s actions do affect people, and looking at America in such a simple selfish way can adversely affect us. She also acknowledges the fault that separates these two groups, and not just her own American experience.
The fact is that America is bigger than just you and I. It is more important than being able to succeed and buy a new I pod. Our dreams are overlooked in a society characterized by its capitalistic opportunities for success. By thinking of your neighbors, your co-workers, different social classes, and different countries, we are destined for a more genuinely constructive collective wellbeing. Be it a factor of intelligence, ignorance, education, or limited experience, personal priority in contrast to the collective values is glaringly unbeneficial.
I couldnt figure out how to put the pictures up, but I do have them.
To answer this question I interviewed several people, several strangers I picked randomly off the street, and a few people that I know personally. In order to put a perspective on the information and avoid nebulous speculation, I formed two groups in which these people fit, sadly it seems that in reality people are very polarized in what they find as important about the AWOL. There are those who look at the AWOL as a bigger picture and those who personalized the AWOL ( Live with the illusion of the American Way of life).
One of the first people I interviewed was a 50 or 60 year old, white, doorman. He seemed quite enamored with the American way of life, saying that it was essentially the ability to do whatever one wants. However, I have never heard of someone who dreamt of being a doorman when they grew up. Unless this man was the one exception and he really did dream of becoming a doorman as a child, his characterization of the AWOL exhibits a lack of large-scale thought. He also seemed fixated on the practical aspects of the AWOL in comparison to the larger picture. He seemed far more invested in his own personal wellbeing than that of the country he so readily supported.
Another person that I interviewed, a middle aged, Hispanic, working class man, with paint-covered clothing, followed suit with the doorman. In his opinion the AWOL is “working hard and being happy with your kids.” A very simple answer indeed, one can assume that this man has children (obviously) so he is most likely talking about his way of life. He continued on by saying, “I’m just thankful I got a job,” and the only bad aspect of America is that “it’s too expensive.” While cost is indeed an issue, there are certainly far more evident problems with our country. He was more concerned with his own economic affairs than the greater picture. Wealth certainly does allow one the leisure to speculate larger issues. When one is struggling just to get by as this man made it seem he was, time is spent on work instead of fervently trying to understand why things are the way they are.
On the other side of this societal rift, there are those who seemed to administer more thought to the subject. When asked “What is the AWOL?” a young, white, male answered mockingly, “A house on one acre, with a trophy wife and two kids.” He almost perfectly characterized the dream of the Hispanic man that I interviewed. His answer is also removed, he isn’t talking about himself, and is instead accurately looking at the greater picture. He continued by saying that “We can’t do what we really want. Nobody cares about your hopes and your dreams, you have to submit to society to get anywhere and go against your dreams in the process.” Becoming a doorman is a perfect example of this, even though that man said that one can do whatever they want, he submitted to the will of society because the painful truth is that the freedom that so many identify with America can only be achieved by working. The Hispanic man that I interviewed was “happy” just have a job while society taunts him with expensive nick nacks. Does American society really look out for these people, or does it just sucker people in with various distractions? This young mans answer to this question is far more thought out, his outlook actually applies to other people, whereas the other two men’s thoughts on the AWOL were almost convoluted and weren’t applicable to the overwhelming majority.
Lastly, I interviewed my own mother, a 51 year old, white, middle class, woman who also spoke broadly about the AWOL. She said, “Some people think we are entitled to a certain standard of living even at the cost of others, meaning other nations, and other feel that we aren’t justified in maintaining this state of entitlement.” She talked about other nations outside of the U.S., beyond herself, because the U.S. is not separate from world affairs as many would like to think. The effects of our actions and our government’s actions do affect people, and looking at America in such a simple selfish way can adversely affect us. She also acknowledges the fault that separates these two groups, and not just her own American experience.
The fact is that America is bigger than just you and I. It is more important than being able to succeed and buy a new I pod. Our dreams are overlooked in a society characterized by its capitalistic opportunities for success. By thinking of your neighbors, your co-workers, different social classes, and different countries, we are destined for a more genuinely constructive collective wellbeing. Be it a factor of intelligence, ignorance, education, or limited experience, personal priority in contrast to the collective values is glaringly unbeneficial.
I couldnt figure out how to put the pictures up, but I do have them.
Friday, October 10, 2008
What do others think about the AWOL?
What is the American way of life? Is it “A house on one acre, with a trophy wife and two kids?” Is it freedom to what one wants?
To answer this question I interviewed five people, my mother, two fellow students, and three men that I asked randomly on the street, so my data is fairly limited. A trend that I noticed was that those who criticized the AWOL removed themselves from their opinions whereas those who seemed somewhat or genuinely positive about it tended to personalize their answers. Two of the people I interviewed openly criticized the AWOL and demonstrated this.
My own mother, a woman with 51 years of experience and thought, was quick to criticize the AWOL by calling it “Overindulgent, ethnocentric, and isolationist.” She feigned almost any responsibility and involvement in her characterization, and when asked if she lived a typical AWOL she hesitantly answered: “Probably. We live beyond our means, which is what most Americans tend to do…” then she quickly added, “In some ways we do not.” When I asked one of (Jack) the student the same question he raised his hand to his chin, stroking it in thought. It took him a minute to regain his composure, then he answered: “Its self centered to say that one is unique, we all think we are special but we really aren’t.” Does he live a typical American way of life? He almost avoided answering it so he would not be included in his own negative portrayal of the AWOL. Both of them were very ambiguous with the answers, there was a almost a tug of war between the need to prove their point and their own self respect.
The other three people that I interviewed were very supportive of the AWOL. These people stated that they live a typical AWOL. The first man that I interviewed was a middle aged, working class, Hispanic male smoking in front of a Duane Read in paint covered clothing. He said that the AWOL was working hard to succeed, being happy with ones kids, and admitted to living his life the way a typical American would. While this mans answers were very succinct he also provided me with some understanding of the American working class. While the others I interviewed in this category thought of the AWOL as the freedom to do what you want, this working class man was happy with getting by. A middle aged, white, male working as a door man said that as Americans we are given “Freedom. We have choices, we aren’t a dictatorship…You can do anything you want.” This man had a very positive outlook whereas the working class man seemed as if he was just going along with it to be able to support he and his family. People who work more simplistic jobs such as the working class man, didn’t seem so sold on the AWOL. The doorman looked as if he probably made more money than the other man, which in our capitalist society equals more comfort. Someone who is more comfortable in America is more likely to be supportive of their countries path while someone like the working class man that I talked to, is less supportive of it because he is not benefiting from it.
Obviously whether or not one benefits from their government is a major factor in whether or not they support the AWOL. My mother, and my parents in general are not very comfortable, we don’t have much money and care little for material possession, so the American capitalist system doesn’t necessarily work for us. We are also small business owners in a dog eat dog society, and people like my mother, and the working class man, dislike the competition. On the other hand somebody who is well situated and doesn’t have as many challenges to face is more likely to be supportive of a society that works in their favor. My good friend David lives on the upper east side, owns his apartment, and his mother receives a pension for her job, and his opinions are far more different than mine. Sometime ago he and I had a conversation on whether or not we thought our country should supply welfare to lower class family. While I spoke in favor of welfare reforms, he spoke against them, saying that people in that situation are there because they did not work hard enough. So one can assume that social class has an important role in peoples decision making process’.
Chris Mathews stated that during times of economic depression the middle class tend to be very liberal, and during times of economic prosperity they tend to be very conservative. I know that when Bill Clinton was president my mothers characterization of the American lifestyle was far more positive. We owned a large chain of restaurants and were very well off economically, but when we lost our business and George Bush came into the white house, she became more cynical of our country. This change in circumstance resembles Chris Mathews’ statement. She now states that if Barrack Obama becomes president, her faith in America will be restored. But will a change in government really change that much about the AWOL? A president can only do so much, pass and veto laws, give consent for war, monitor Americans behavior, but control the very way people live their lives? It seems unlikely.
Keep in mind that this is a very rough, first draft, so be very critical.
To answer this question I interviewed five people, my mother, two fellow students, and three men that I asked randomly on the street, so my data is fairly limited. A trend that I noticed was that those who criticized the AWOL removed themselves from their opinions whereas those who seemed somewhat or genuinely positive about it tended to personalize their answers. Two of the people I interviewed openly criticized the AWOL and demonstrated this.
My own mother, a woman with 51 years of experience and thought, was quick to criticize the AWOL by calling it “Overindulgent, ethnocentric, and isolationist.” She feigned almost any responsibility and involvement in her characterization, and when asked if she lived a typical AWOL she hesitantly answered: “Probably. We live beyond our means, which is what most Americans tend to do…” then she quickly added, “In some ways we do not.” When I asked one of (Jack) the student the same question he raised his hand to his chin, stroking it in thought. It took him a minute to regain his composure, then he answered: “Its self centered to say that one is unique, we all think we are special but we really aren’t.” Does he live a typical American way of life? He almost avoided answering it so he would not be included in his own negative portrayal of the AWOL. Both of them were very ambiguous with the answers, there was a almost a tug of war between the need to prove their point and their own self respect.
The other three people that I interviewed were very supportive of the AWOL. These people stated that they live a typical AWOL. The first man that I interviewed was a middle aged, working class, Hispanic male smoking in front of a Duane Read in paint covered clothing. He said that the AWOL was working hard to succeed, being happy with ones kids, and admitted to living his life the way a typical American would. While this mans answers were very succinct he also provided me with some understanding of the American working class. While the others I interviewed in this category thought of the AWOL as the freedom to do what you want, this working class man was happy with getting by. A middle aged, white, male working as a door man said that as Americans we are given “Freedom. We have choices, we aren’t a dictatorship…You can do anything you want.” This man had a very positive outlook whereas the working class man seemed as if he was just going along with it to be able to support he and his family. People who work more simplistic jobs such as the working class man, didn’t seem so sold on the AWOL. The doorman looked as if he probably made more money than the other man, which in our capitalist society equals more comfort. Someone who is more comfortable in America is more likely to be supportive of their countries path while someone like the working class man that I talked to, is less supportive of it because he is not benefiting from it.
Obviously whether or not one benefits from their government is a major factor in whether or not they support the AWOL. My mother, and my parents in general are not very comfortable, we don’t have much money and care little for material possession, so the American capitalist system doesn’t necessarily work for us. We are also small business owners in a dog eat dog society, and people like my mother, and the working class man, dislike the competition. On the other hand somebody who is well situated and doesn’t have as many challenges to face is more likely to be supportive of a society that works in their favor. My good friend David lives on the upper east side, owns his apartment, and his mother receives a pension for her job, and his opinions are far more different than mine. Sometime ago he and I had a conversation on whether or not we thought our country should supply welfare to lower class family. While I spoke in favor of welfare reforms, he spoke against them, saying that people in that situation are there because they did not work hard enough. So one can assume that social class has an important role in peoples decision making process’.
Chris Mathews stated that during times of economic depression the middle class tend to be very liberal, and during times of economic prosperity they tend to be very conservative. I know that when Bill Clinton was president my mothers characterization of the American lifestyle was far more positive. We owned a large chain of restaurants and were very well off economically, but when we lost our business and George Bush came into the white house, she became more cynical of our country. This change in circumstance resembles Chris Mathews’ statement. She now states that if Barrack Obama becomes president, her faith in America will be restored. But will a change in government really change that much about the AWOL? A president can only do so much, pass and veto laws, give consent for war, monitor Americans behavior, but control the very way people live their lives? It seems unlikely.
Keep in mind that this is a very rough, first draft, so be very critical.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)