re: #439 ObserverArt

A buddy and I were talking about the debt a current young American faces in their lifetime.

Coming out of college in debt, adding additional debt to buy a home (if even possible) and then growing older still in debt only to run into health issues to add even more debt.

We came to the conclusion it is intended because it keeps everyone working for the banks, under control as far as behavior because you can’t be risky and then when you die they take what is left.

Ah the American Dream. What was that again? I can’t remember.

America has very much evolved into a plutocracy. Wealth has always bought influence and power, but wealth alone is rarely enough to compel obedience of the populace to maintain the societal structure that allows wealth. Aristocracy and monarchy compelled obedience through religion and the belief in the divine right. Dictatorships compel obedience through a monopoly on force. America now compels obedience through a modified religious method - worship of the rich and belief in their moral superiority.

From an academic point of view, some measure of compulsion has always been necessary because control of the means of production has always depended on control of the populace. This is the core idea behind Marxism (revolution to reclaim control of the means of production) and also the reason why Randian Objectivism is such a ludicrous fantasy (rich people don’t exist in a vacuum). I wonder, though, what will happen as automation becomes more prevalent and the means of production really doesn’t depend on a population any more. What happens as the rich realise that they don’t need other humans any more and that they only cost money to control?