Quoting ARLO J BENSINGER JR <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > [Platt] > I don't know what planet you are living on at times, Arlo. Surely you know > what > ultimately happens to people who don't pay taxes due. > > [Arlo] > Only when (as Case points out) you want to pay but not play. You want the > good, > you have to pay for the system that provides, supports and sustains it. I do > this happily, even though I support allocation rethinking, collection > re-engineering and greater oversight. I guess its a shame some people have to > be forced "at the point of a gun" to help pay for the system that has supports > and sustains the life they enjoy; from police and military protection to > public > lands to free road and waterways to libraries and museums to EMT services to a > social safety net to meals on wheels to literacy programs and public > education. > But I guess some people need to be forced "at the point of a gun" not to > murder > other people too.
At last, agreement on the true nature of government -- legalized force. > [Platt] > Yes, shiny toy objects like EKG monitors, anesthesia machines, respiratory > ventilators, cautery units, etc, etc. -- all those objects that save countless > lives. But why point this out when capitalism to you means exploitation. > > [Arlo] > I point out the flaws because there is a sycophantic blindness in the dialogue > that pretends exploitation and the schism described by Pirsig in ZMM don't > happen or don't matter. These "toys" you mention are wonderful, but we should > never lose sight of the fact that they are not what makes our lives ultimately > meaningful. (Believe it or not, people led full and meaningful lives before > capitalism). Family, friends, community, wisdom, understanding, the > appreciation of beauty, of harmony, or shared laughter and shared pain, of > knowing what it means to be human, to be here, to share history and sing songs > and paint pictures and solve equations and hunt and fish and hike and ride > motorcycles with our sons and daughters. These things, among many others you > could name, are what truly matters in life. An EKG machine can extend your > days, but it doesn't give your life meaning. Sure is better to have riches in order to more fully enjoy all those things you mention. As Sophie Tucker said, "I've been rich and I've been poor. Believe me, honey, rich is better." I'd much rather seek a meaningful life as a native of the U.S. than of Borneo. My guess is that you would, too. > > > moq_discuss mailing list > Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. > http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org > Archives: > http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ > http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/ > ------------------------------------------------- This mail sent through IMP: http://horde.org/imp/ moq_discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
