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                                             Some thoughts...

Saturday, August 13, 2005

Economix
Remember the school bully who would hog the swing?
Asking him to get off because it was your turn would invite a punch or two, and not wanting to be part of that predictable future you preferred to play on the slide instead.

Pure Capitalists argure that this is fair.
The bully has the right to use his physical strength to his advantage. If you are smaller in size, then too bad. Learn karate or whatever and then fight him.
I can't resist saying this.... you might also get a kick out of it!!

The moderate Capitalists argue that the little guy should also get a chance. They favour the teacher intervening to force him off for sometime to let you on.

Is one view fairer than the other? Which situation would you prefer to be in?

What if you were the bully to begin with?
But who do you think is in majority here?.... what about the greater good?....is there such a thing?

posted by Ashish at 2:33 AM

6 Comments:

  • The little guy should not wait till he found out which of the two views is 'correct' or which view will ultimately prevail. He should learn karate anyway.
    If the teacher favours the capitalists he might need an extra belt, if the teacher is apathetic, he might try to convince her meanwhile learning karate, if the teacher is on his side, he must still learn karate because tomorrow there might be a substitute teacher.
    Or he might laugh about it in his cartoon strip and make the best out of a raw deal.

    By Blogger anant, at 1:19 PM  

  • I feel this situation is very akin to an actual capitalist society with the teacher playing the role of the government and the the two guys the role of capitalists. The little guy then represents the inefficient/incapable product/service provider and unless he empowers himself (becomes efficient/greater value-adding enterprise), he should back out in the greater interest of the society.

    On second thoughts, I feel the two situations may be incomparable. It is odd to have sympathetic feelings for an organisation. So, even though giving a chance to the little guy seems ethically and morally correct, giving a similar chance to an inefficient capitalist enterprise is surely a bad idea. The role of the teacher should be only to provide a level-playing field. Yes, the big bully might get a kick himself, but isn't that the best solution for the society ?

    The little guy must learn karate.

    By Blogger RAHUL JAISWAL, at 4:44 PM  

  • I think this is a poor analogy for capitalism. The picture is of a zero sum game, if someone wins, someone else has to lose.

    In capitalism the little fellow would build a better swing set. There will be more swings. He will get to date the cute girl that was looking for a clever fellow like him.

    It is the rules, regulations, and teachers that give the big guy power. They keep the little guy from hiring a bigger guy for defense while he concentrates on profitable innovation.

    Capitalism is additive. If you don't like what is there, create something new. Now there is more choice, and better tech available.

    Everyone except the bully profits.

    By Blogger BFuniv, at 8:21 AM  

  • Hi - I really like your blog. I have a website on karate kick that you might find of interest. Here's the link. Have a look at it and let me know what you think.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 9:47 AM  

  • Put aside all this intellectual discussion dude...If i were the one getting bullied, you think I wud wait around to analyze this question?????? And if I was the bully....... ;-), Do i need to continue , my friend......

    By Blogger Priya, at 9:22 PM  

  • The situation is akin to the teacher being the government and a big guy (BG)something like a Microsoft and the little guy's (LG) someone "little".

    We have to assume that the teacher is more powerful than the BG and better be so because physical force (influence, money, raw power in real life) is everything in a free for all capitalistic culture!

    Now coming to the greater good. It has to be for the entire society and neither BG or LG. Ideally, the teacher would make a policy of a level playing field and see what the results are. The teacher should not hesistate in changing policies (read laws) if the situation demands. After all, it has the power! The policy should result in a few BGs (not a single one!) and many smaller LGs jostling for space.

    Coming to what the LG should do. Definitely, he needs to learn karate, Kung Fu or whatever that helps him take a share of the pie from BG. If he succeeds, he may become a BG and start behaving like one! If he doesn't, bad luck. Learn Kalaripayattu. That's the circle of life....

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 2:06 PM  

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