Brad, You are closer than you think.
There will be no free market until Land is part of it. As it is Land is not controlled by the engine of the free market - the price mechanism. The return to Labor is controlled by the price mechanism that continually provides the best labor at the cheapest price. The return to Capital is controlled by the price mechanism that continually provides the best capital at the cheapest price. The return to Land is not controlled by the price mechanism and tends to increase constantly - taking the lion's share of production. Arthur and I were discussing the distribution of production - agreeing that production itself was not a problem. The distribution of production was the problem. Now you know why that problem occurs. As I put it earlier, there is a hemorrhaging of production into the hands of landholders. If the total land-value of the US is $30 trillion as I have heard estimated, just 5% annual land rent diverts $1.5 trillion from Labor and Capital every year. That bloodletting buys corporations and politicians. As I mentioned earlier, Marx pointed out that the Industrial Revolution was financed by the collected Rents of the landholders. But, there is more. An important "income" is the increase in value of land. This is not taxed as income and if the capital gains tax is repealed, this enormous increase will be untaxed completely - even though your hour of overtime will be. I should make the point that a capital gains tax doesn't tax capital at all. It's actually a tax on land value increase. Because economists have either forgotten their basics or more likely never learned them, they think accumulations of money are capital. Classically, Capital is a material product of Labor in the production process. Capital in production only decreases in value as it wears. There is no such thing as a "Capital gain" (except perhaps temporary price mechanism oscillations). So, there are no "Capital gains" to be taxed. However, there are land value increases and these are the targets for the tax. (However, such a tax doesn't produce the desirable economic effects provided by a straight land value tax.) You will notice that Capital is a product of Labor. The fact is that Capital and Labor are on the same side and they prosper or sink together. That they are continually fighting each other is a triumph of the privileged over over-worked, over-taxed, citizens. But you know that. Harry ******************************************** Henry George School of Social Science of Los Angeles Box 655 Tujunga CA 91042 Tel: 818 352-4141 -- Fax: 818 353-2242 http://haledward.home.comcast.net ******************************************** -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Brad McCormick, Ed.D. Sent: Thursday, January 01, 2004 5:33 AM To: Ray Evans Harrell Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [Futurework] The Industrial Reserve Army at work improvingproductivity Ray Evans Harrell wrote: > Happy New Year. > > Its nice to see that one person on the list "gets" the solution provided by > this sick society for artists. Now Brad is beginning to imagine the same > thing for other professions as well. A combination of conscription and "working for free" can keep labor costs down. Perhaps the most serious argument against a guaranteed income is not that it would make people lazy, but that it would enable artists and others to "hold out" until they got a decent remuneration for their work. Wouldn't this be a more truly free market than one in which many are forced to sell their labor at bargain basement rates? One man's free market Is another man's involuntary servitude. But there are exceptions to the starving artist rule: http://www.users.cloud9.net/~bradmcc/quotes3.html#Q140 Was Gehry born this way? Or did "paying his dues" leave him resolved he'd never take that kind of crap again, and also with no desire to help the next generation have an easier time of it? \brad mccormick > If you want to know how that works, > think 98% unemployment amongst college graduates. When the same is true > for everyone then this crazy invisible hand on my private parts will be > shared by all and someone will rise up and cut it off. > > May your New Year be as happy as for the Artists of America. > > REH > > PS Every artist giving a concert that makes 60% of its return in ticket > sales and makes it up from his own teaching is doing it to keep his name in > front of a fickle public who appluades wildly and rides freely. Most of > those old jazz recordings that you love never made a cent for the artist. > They were just advertisement paid for by the artist or some "angel". > Fame is the most fleeting of capital investments. Saw a lot of those > folks tonight on the TV singing the old songs. Put them back now in the > box for another year and goodnight. > > > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Brad McCormick, Ed.D." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2003 8:31 PM > Subject: [Futurework] The Industrial Reserve Army at work improving > productivity > > > >>Here's an item I just saw on the NYT on the Web homepage (note >>that the article is *old* and therefore only accessible >>by paying an archive retrieval fee, even though there is >>no indication of this: Newton only invented laws of physics -- >>somebody at thet NYT has here invented a new way to >>make money!) >> >> http://www.users.cloud9.net/~bradmcc/sq/FreeWork.gif >> >>If productivity is output divided by costs, the benefits >>of unemployment are obvious. >> >>Also: The solution to copyright problems is to >>starve the writers, then they will put their stuff up >>for free, in part so somebody will see it, and in >>other part (like the lady in the picture...), in hopes >>of attracting paid employment. >> >>Just think of how unemployed cardiologists and >>neurosurgeons and other workers could >>help hold down rising medical costs (etc.)! >>Apocryphal testimonial: "I, George W Bush, >>got a free heart transplant from an unemployed >>cardiologist who hoped that by operating on me >>he might attract a job offer. Actually, I've >>had three, since the first two have already >>had to be replaced. I heart-ily recommend it if you >>are lucky enough to get an invitation." >> >>Cheers! >> >>\brad mccormick --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.557 / Virus Database: 349 - Release Date: 12/30/2003 _______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://fes.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
