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Old 05-09-2008, 12:57 PM   #148 (permalink)
Katczinsky
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Quote:
Originally Posted by waitingtables View Post
What? It is hateful to argue for the rights of the rich to hoarde their money while hard working, tax paying people can't afford to go to the doctor, or have to choose their bills over their health.
The primary source of the capitalist's wealth is accumulated capital; which is essentially the accumulation of surplus value (unpaid labor to the worker). Even if we're to ignore this exploitative concept, the rich still highly owe their situations to society. I couldn't think of a more fair thing than a progressive tax on profits (inevitably the rich), except maybe income redistribution itself.

Paris Hilton, if I'm not mistaken, does not really earn her wealth by the exploitation of labor and the accumulation of unpaid labor. She mostly just sells herself and her own labor power (e.g. her attractiveness). The only thing I could think of is maybe the production and sale of her records, shows, and book; in which case she's probably just another laborer in the production of these products and the record/film/printing companies reap the profits. She might fall into the same category of people such as professional sports players and even artists, where although technically exploitation occurs, they're just very highly compensated for their labor/skills (and definitely overly compensated compared to the compensation of nearly all other skilled laborers as you point out). But her kind is definitely the exception and not the rule.
"If you want to achieve peace of mind and happiness, then have faith; if you want to be a disciple of truth, then search" -- Friedrich Nietzsche

Economic Left/Right: -9.50
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -6.72

Last edited by Katczinsky; 05-09-2008 at 12:59 PM.
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Katczinsky For This Useful Post:
CrazyFlamingos (05-09-2008), waitingtables (05-09-2008)