Sorry about the ad-hominem in the previous post, it was a poor choice of words.
I did not claim that capitalism was 'fair', nor that the rich elites did not have a political leverage to further their personal well being. But it's not slavery. Calling things "Unfair" would be a good start, and then figuring out the parameters of the solution space. I.e. if the status quo is "unfair", then what would "fair" look like. It certainly does feel unfair that while the productivity has skyrocketed people still need to work 40 hour weeks to provide for housing, food and healthcare.
But I don't think the answer to "fair" is in rural pre-industrial societies.
I said: "I think you need to specify your historical period and geographical region before you can claim that a great number of people had access to productive land and economic independence before industrial revolution."
To which you replied: "Pre industrial revolution: Anywhere."
"Anywhere" would imply all members of pre-industrial agricultural communities thrived in sovereign bliss. This is quite far from the truth.
I did not claim that capitalism was 'fair', nor that the rich elites did not have a political leverage to further their personal well being. But it's not slavery. Calling things "Unfair" would be a good start, and then figuring out the parameters of the solution space. I.e. if the status quo is "unfair", then what would "fair" look like. It certainly does feel unfair that while the productivity has skyrocketed people still need to work 40 hour weeks to provide for housing, food and healthcare.
But I don't think the answer to "fair" is in rural pre-industrial societies.
I said: "I think you need to specify your historical period and geographical region before you can claim that a great number of people had access to productive land and economic independence before industrial revolution."
To which you replied: "Pre industrial revolution: Anywhere."
"Anywhere" would imply all members of pre-industrial agricultural communities thrived in sovereign bliss. This is quite far from the truth.
Russia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serfdom_in_Russia#Transition_t...
Ireland: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Famine_%28Ireland%29#Lan...