: comfortable lifestyle afforded them by their alledged miserable, menial, and meaningless jobs.I think the notion that wages are paid only to the point where the worker can replicate another generation is weak, but applied here in the West would seem to indicate that holidays, video games, cars, meals out are 'necessities' in the way food, water and shelter were 300 years ago.
: When you say, "If everyone 'pulled themselves up by the bootstraps'", you assume everyone can or that everyone will.
I do wonder whether people, given opportunity , will always attempt to realize its potential. i don't think that anyone can say with any confidence (or evidence) that they will, whilst we can draw upon empirical, and at a personal level anecdotal, evidence of people not trying despite opportunity. Why this is is another matter, worth discussing too.
: You want to change those circumstances to provide equal opportunity
I don't think thats what many socialists want, but rather they want rigid equality of outcome and to hell with the "the manifest unequality of mankind." regardless of its actual effects, and peoples actual behaviour, goals, values and beliefs.
: If you were inclined to think in terms of LTV and job rotation then, you'd end up a lot hungrier than you are now.
I wonder what kind of hyperbole accusatory response that last sentence will yield! I am interested in what you mean when you say that though. Are you saying that socialism can only be thought about in the relative luxury bought about by the very system and the very motivations it damns?
