I will clarify, I do not think the solution is theft or taxation, of anyone or by anyone. I understand there have been tax breaks for the rich, and they create their own loopholes, however in the US, since 100% of income taxes go to the bankers who fund the imperial war machine, and ZERO goes to services expected by the taxpayer, increasing tax on the rich will only increase funding of the very system of war you oppose, so that cannot be the answer. I propose the radical idea that no one be permitted to steal from anyone, and that all social services are funded, voluntarily, by those who actually want and will use those services! The bankers along with the inflation they create that benefits only the rich must of course also go, that’s a given for a free society...
The answer can only be a system, if the problem is a system, but the problem is greed, thus sharing the solution. If a system is necessary to prevent the need for sharing, then there was greed present (lack of sharing) necessitating the creation of such a system. The answer to greed is not theft, it is sharing.
I agree we need reforms that prevent the creation and perpetuation of an owner class, however I see those reforms as being primarily in the heart, you seem to see them primarily as external changes to the system. To demand political reforms to eradicate the owner class akin to plantation slaves demanding a slave owner to reform his policies in such a way he is no longer a slave owner. Ain’t gonna happen.
I agree that the means of production should be in the hands of those producing it, which is why I’m surprised you say my priorities are skewed, considering my top priority is literally creating and promoting community based upon the socialist ideals that would immediately put the production back in the hands of those producing it - in a practical and real way, and without force or threat of force of any kind. This of course requires the willingness of all those involved to share what they have produced with the community, demonstrating that sharing actually is a part of the solution, that goes hand in hand with practically achieving the ideal you seek in the real world settings. Such communities exist, and work, but only if members are willing to share.
Very often those who say sharing isn’t the solution, are those unwilling to share with the ones less fortunate than themselves, but at the same time expect a system to bring about equality by forcing the rich to share with everyone else through whatever means desired by such political reforms intended to do such. If we aren’t willing to share, we cannot expect the rich to share, and if we demand the rich be forced to share, we are on some level admitting that greed and not the particular political system at play is the root problem, or else such force (state sponsored socialism, increased taxes, or any other government mandates) would be unnecessary.
It seems I am just focused on changing the problems within humanity that give rise to the corrupt systems you are seeking to change through political reform. We both want the same end goals, I just don’t think your methods will actually ever achieve them. This is because such political reform can never bring about the ideals those pushing them seek unless the personal changes have first taken place within humanity at the heart level of the individual, which is why communism has previously been such a miserable failure, not because the communist ideal was so bad at all, but because it was implemented by corrupt systems made up of men who did not truly love their neighbors as themselves and still harbored greed in their hearts (along with a healthy dose of hatred and fear).
As it is, factory workers can all walk away from their jobs at once, going on a permanent strike, immediately demonstrating that the corporation is not the true owner of production, but they as the workforce are, and without them the corporation has no product and thus no ownership or control over either the peasants or of the product. For you cannot own the product you no longer have the ability to produce. If humanity united, there are many such simple ways we could, through various direct actions, bring about immediate change. Only by staying divided along political lines and projecting responsibility for solutions onto the very system that is the problem can the system exist as such. Only by humans allowing themselves to be used as peasant slaves for the monopolization of production by the predator class can the predators maintain their monopoly over production (and ownership of the peasants as their slaves). No one is forcing anyone to work as ‘slaves’ for the rich, it is a choice they make.
The pyramid of power is a big problem, yes, but, by allowing ourselves to remain at the bottom of the pyramid as the peasant class using our labor/taxes/votes/purchases/consumption of corporate products to fuel the machine, we are in some sense responsible for perpetuating its existence.
Slaves were initially freed, not by political reforms, but by being willing to stand up and walk away from their slavery, taking the necessary risks and practical steps to make their flight to freedom. Some didn’t make it, many others did, and they lived (relatively) free, showing that the true power always lies in our hands, and telling ourselves that we must wait for others to make political changes on our behalf to bring about the change we seek is both incorrect and disempowering.
My message is freedom, empowerment, peace, and loving neighbor as self. The radical solution I propose is withdrawing support from this oligarch class and creating our own community, but of course that takes real work, dedication, sacrifice, and the willingness to share, and also the willingness to abandon the idea that political reform is more important than practical solutions.
We are seeking the same outcome, only having different ideas about how to achieve that outcome. Whichever method actually works, I hope the desired outcome is achieved, if not on a global or societal level, at least at a local/community level.
Humanity is ready, and if you haven’t seen it already, you may appreciate the documentary, “Thrive” - getting into the banking system, corporate corruption, and pyramid power structure responsible for perpetuating the current wealth disparity, endless war, and greed-based insanity - and most important of all, looks at practical solutions. If you watch, let me know what you think, it was an eye-opener for me, especially to see all the signs that people are ready to shift from the fear/greed-based paradigm to a love/freedom-based paradigm, where ALL of humanity can thrive, and best of all (in my opinion), without anyone forcing anyone else to do anything against their will. It’s not political at all, looking strictly at the problems and a variety of solutions, very well researched:
Hi there @jasonliberty :-) Thanks again for responding my friend. I've seen Thrive a couple of years ago, so memory is a bit fuzzy, but I found it impressive; I'm glad you discovered it too. There's one big problem with it though; it ultimately fails to condemn capitalism for what it is, and boils down to what's essentially advocating for some form of anarcho-capitalism, an anarcho-capitalist Utopia. And that's ludicrous as far as I'm concerned. Worse even; it's in direct contradiction to the non-aggression principle. I really don't understand how people can not fathom that both the military industrial complex and the central banking system are direct consequences of capitalism, and how they don't get that capitalism is simply a continuation of all preceding systems. Read State Of Confusion, which I wrote two days ago, to see what I mean...
Taxation isn't theft. Taxing the rich and corporations the only practical solution to counter the theft that's inherent in capitalism. I've said it a thousand times, and I'll say it again: there is no invisible hand to magically create a fair equilibrium in a system that's based on the accumulation of private wealth. That is: based on the concentration of power in the hands of the owners of the means of production. That ultimately leads to the crony capitalism we see now and is also called "late stage capitalism".