Chris Beckwith rails:
> There's a good many business folk in this town
> that could use a swift kick to
> their royal kiesters (and I'd include some
> politicians, too) . Minneapolis has become
> horribly price-gouged in terms of goods and
> services while real wages are not keeping up...
{MH] Ahh yes, many deserve a swift kick at some time or another. But do you
really think local businesses are price-gouging and holding down real
wages... controlling the economy? Do you really think they have that kind
of power and consumers have none?
> ...This city, like much of the
> country, is awash in an encroaching - almost
> reactionary - lack of economic realism about the
> cost of living. Never before have I encountered
> such a shocking absence of candor (if not
> political will) about the simple reality of what
> it costs to live and how this effects the growing
> numbers who can't afford it.
[MH] I'd suggest the country is awash in a growing population of folks with
a complete lack of knowledge about basic economics and how our economy works
in reality; folks with a growing sense of entitlement, feeling that they are
owed this and owed that by society-- that they have rights to this and
rights to that, yet are responsible for nothing. Look at high school drop
out rates here and across the country... what do all these kids (and their
parents) expect from life? Have they no degree of responsibility for their
condition-- now and down the road? Or do they simply get by, kids having
more kids, teaching them nothing and instilling no values, and watching, as
the cycle repeats? That's largely been the situation over the past two
generations... is nothing to change? How does society deal with this
dynamic?
>...Well, I don't anticipate I'll be
> getting a rent reduction notices in the mail
> anytime soon. Show me the landlord who is willing
> to reduce his/her prices
[MH] Have the landlords costs dropped, his expenses fallen? If a landlord
isn't making a profit, why is he in business. Everyone has to earn a
living... well, most anyway. If he can't make money as a landlord, he
should get rid of the building and do something else. Maybe you'll want to
by the building and incur losses so the tenants can afford the rent... maybe
get a second job to help you cover the mortgage.
>...Capitalism graces us with
> too many brands of potato chips, grossly over-paid
> sports stars and corporate CEOs and, as
> illustrated most recently, high echelon corporate
> honchos with a noxious sense of financial
> entitlement so profound it allows them to bilk
> their company employees of billions in retirement
> investments. But on the issues of housing,
> healthcare, and the cost of educating a kid, where
> genuine need resides, well, let's just say if you
> think sheer unchecked market forces are going to
> solve those problems anytime soon, then I'd say
> you've been chasing white rabbits
[MH] So, don't buy potato chips; or any products from companies that you
feel, pay the CEO too much; forget major league sports. Just where does the
money come from that funds public education, builds housing (any housing),
roads, streets and sewers... and probably the money that supports your
organization and your regular paycheck and benefits? The money that
supports the corner grocery, the hardware store, diner and bakery? I mean
what is the ultimate source of all that money? People working hard, earning
and investing, paying taxes, and reinvesting and creating WEALTH; it's the
capitalist system that provides incentives to get ahead in life; work hard,
get an education, and keep working hard. Sure, capitalism isn't perfect,
it's a dynamic system, just like life. If you work hard, you will usually
be rewarded-- not always, but then, who ever said life is fair? Capitalism
seems to be the best system going; continually being emulated around the
world in various shapes and fashions. Mao and Lenin were successful in the
short-term, but capitalism seems to be leading over the longer-term.
Chris is correct about unchecked market forces. They are a myth, so they
will not solve any problems, white rabbits or no. Market inefficiencies are
usually corrected in short order (often in minutes and seconds on
exchanges); real property is bought and sold, revitalized and sold; profits
made and profits lost. The well dressed woman in furs and gold, standing on
the wrong corner at the wrong time will quickly be separated from her
visible assets-- just another example of market dynamics. There is little
in life that goes 'unchecked.'
Michael Hohmann
Linden Hills
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of
> Chris L Beckwith
> Sent: Saturday, April 06, 2002 1:19 AM
> To: Mpls - Issues
> Subject: Re: [Mpls] affordable housing advocates?/Rant Control/Creeping
> Socialism
>
snip
> > >>
> > Keith says; First of all, " ... to cover their
> in-hock asses. Steve Frenz..."
> > has a disrespectful implication toward business
> people.
>
> Chris responds:
>
> Disrespectful? That's much too euphemistic. Let me
> put it bluntly:
> There's a good many business folk in this town
> that could use a swift kick to
> their royal kiesters (and I'd include some
> politicians, too) .
snip
to Keith
> Second, and much more
> > significant, the housing shortage is really a
> money shortage in the renter
> > pool.
>
> Chris responds: Well, gee whiz, ya think...?
>
snip
> Chris Beckwith
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