As I work in the grocery business, the week before
Thanksgiving is hell week. I work long, ugly hours with
mean, rude customers. This year, I also work on Thanksgiving day,
all day. Now, advertisers and the media make claims about
this week as to how this is the most “wonderful” time of the year,
but the reality is it is “wonderful” depending upon your particular
situation. Your situation might allow you to think how “wonderful”
this week is, with family and food and football. But for millions,
every week and every week is a challenge to families with limited resources.
As millions are living from paycheck to paycheck and one incident could
cause a family to go into debt or suffer to the point of being unable to
put food on the table. The idea that families are to blame for their
situations is simply not true given we are involved in systems, all of us
are in vast number of systems, and sometimes one part of they system
causes massive disruptions in our lives. If we are part of any number of
systems, then we are involved together within the systems. A failure in
one part of the system affects all of us in that system, but not only
that system, but in other systems. So if the economic system is
failing, that affects a vast number of other systems. And that is
part of the problem here, we have an economic system which is failing
a vast majority of those who exists within that economic system.
In other words, the capitalistic system only rewards those at
the top of the system and damages the other 99% of us.
How can a system be considered successful if it damages most
of its participant in that system? The numbers are quite clear,
the 1% has appropriated all of the wealth created over the last
30 years and has left nothing for the rest of us.
Unless we have a fair and equitable system, we run the risk of
so damaging the vast number of people within the system and
by doing so, collapse the system. A system, any system cannot
function if the vast majority of the system is punished or
unable to be rewarded in a system. Our system, the capitalistic
system is designed to reward only those at the top and leave
the rest in chaos and poverty and that means people will
not engage in or be part of a system that doesn’t reward them
for their work. We have a vast number of people who have
no interest in being part of our current system because it
doesn’t offer them anything or offer any incentive to be part
of the system. These people have been left behind and that
causes a drag on the system. We must engage them enough to
rejoin active participation into the system.
Because there is no point to engage in our current economic system
because there is no benefit to do so. You are working yourself
to death and suffering from alienation and for what? the right
to sink into poverty and living from paycheck to paycheck.
The answer is justice which is another word for equality.
to be just means we treat everyone equally. And our
economic AND political system do not treat people equally,
which means our economic and political system is unjust.
why work in a system that is so evidently and clearly unjust?
I don’t see the point and you shouldn’t see the point.
so what are we to do? We must create a system which is just
and equal. As the capitalistic system isn’t just or it isn’t equal,
so it must end. simple as that. Our engagement must be with justice
and equality and our current system fails to do that.
So this becomes a question of values. What values should an
economic and/or political system have?
I say justice and equality must be part of the major values
any economic and/or political system. Without those values in
any economic or political system, there is no point in being part
of that system.
So what values should an economic or political system have?
Kropotkin