Posted on 12/08/2013 9:14:28 AM PST by grundle
If you could abolish income inequality, or poverty, but not both, which one would you choose?
Scenario #1: Income inequality has been abolished, but poverty remains.
Scenario #2: Poverty has been abolished, but income inequality remains.
(Excerpt) Read more at danfromsquirrelhill.wordpress.com ...
Bloggers be pimpin', I react to it.
Cause and effect.
It is not an either/or question.
If you have income equality, then everyone will be poor. Where is the incentive to improve yourself?
Poverty is not a fixed state. People enter and exit poverty all the time. Or I should say, before the great society created a new form of poverty, people for various reasons find themselves in poverty (look at the 1930s and the dust bowls). Without a safety net the population moved to where jobs could be found. Almost all those that were in poverty managed to re-enter middle class later.
It is a trick question because both sides of your choices lead to the same point, but there are other options.
You want to get rid of poverty, do away with welfare, minimum wage, reduce regulation to the minimum, lower taxes, allow freer competition.
...and in general get government out of the way(when possible, I understand the need for some regulation, but truth is we are buried under laws, restrictions and regulation).
“Try effort inequality”
Capitalism doesn’t ban that, but it does reward or punish it
No hits for you, cupcake.
***
Yes, but would you hit a tart?
:-)
I guess he should be called by his nickname, Taint.
Just to make him feel like we really know what he is.
There is historic precedent for that, yes...
For there to be a path from poverty, there still must be poverty. As for the initial post, removing either means exactly the same thing; those who wish to do nothing will have exactly the same as those who do everything. It is exactly as others have said, a trick question.
The real problem, everywhere in the 'civilized' world, is that while the situation for those in 'utter poverty' are constantly having their standard of living raised, those who have crawled out of poverty hit the wall of high taxation and costs and are unable to breach further. And the only way to reinspire innovation and creativity is to stop stealing so many resources to simply hand to those who will do nothing.
Give the man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime.. until you take all but one fish to feed to those who won't bother.
And stupid poll conductors!
In any society you will have people that fill the whole spectrum of economic motivation. Some are economically motivated just enough to keep the tires on their 4WD and beer in the cooler. Some are economically motivated just enough to keep just a little food in a cardboard box and that’s it. Some are economically motivated to be number one in business and industry. Given this fact, the country with the biggest disparity between the non-motivated and the most-motivated would be the best.
Exactly. What some consider “poverty” in this country, would be considered “well off” in a place like Haiti.
I would abolish polls...
I'm with you on this one.
Poll FReep — scenario 2 is whipping scenario 1. Thanks grundle.
#1, if income inequality is gone, but poverty isn't, then EVERYONE is poor.
#2, if poverty is gone, and inequality isn't, then you have some well-off and some even better off, but NOBODY is poor.
Seems like a no-brainer to me.
(But again, as others have already noted, both choices involve all FReedom being eliminated, so neither choice is worthwhile in the real world.)
The only reason I checked off the excerpt box is because the poll’s checkoff boxes can’t be posted at Free Republic.
Your post #7 is excellent!
Eliminate poverty and a few days later some people will already be poor again.
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