How we fund our capitalism sickens me.

[WingDinger]

I have thought about this for years. I am embarrassed. Ashamed. Mortified.

We fund our capitalistic culture with manipulation, subliminal scam, and fear mongering. I am talking about advertising. Is this the best and only system possible? It lead to the shuttle disaster. It enshrines lying. Leads to corporate person hood. Puts a false face on those not in the least out to help you. One would get the idea from comms that they are just glad to be of service.

Then there are the fake, lamebrains that represent them. Pretty women that promise if you buy their crap, she will screw you. Ads that intentionally sow discord between parent and child.

Further, ads almost exclusively elect our leaders. Corps having person hood, are allowed to lie, without repercussion. Casey Anthony gets four years in prison, they get rich. We believe that the news is to inform us, it is not. We believe advocacy groups are pure. We are scared into staying behind closed doors. The better to sell as a block of suckers.

We rail against those that disappoint us, as if they are friends, and not businesses.

Those that design ads, intentionally make you miserable. The ennui meant to motivate you to fill the void with crap. That a system is used to harm humans sense of well being, is a travesty. They make women kill themselves literally, to look younger. They make men do violent things, to appear macho. We cheer, as ever more means of administering the misery is invented or allowed.

At the VERY LEAST, we should be taught somehow to ignore the frauds imposed upon us almost from birth. Instead, even school has the damned abominations. We even have awards for the most persuasive. Many of the most prestigious positions are these liars.

Worse yet, we give them tax breaks to spew them against us. That is, we pay them to indoctrinate us.

To hell with capitalism, if fraud and manipulation is all it has to offer as funding. If I was an alien, and I had a doomsday weapon, seeing our boobtoob, I would launch.

Then again, I guess human nature is what disgusts me. What sad creatures.

[ixion]

1. capitalism, in theory, doesn't need 'funding', if it's really capitalism...what we have here

is crony corporatism, which while a morally and ethically corrupt relation to capitalism, is not, in fact, capitalism at all.

[SDuderstadt]

2. Huh?

How did advertising lead to the Shuttle Disaster?

[WingDinger]

4. Launch schedules were strict, environmental concerns lead to the elimination of the seating compound

for commercial purposes, so it was removed from the market. Nasqa doesnt run commercials, so worse compounds were relied upon.

[SDuderstadt]

5. What does that have to do with...

the Shuttle Disaster?

[WingDinger]

7. Without advertizing, we have not the funding necessary for desired ends.

We couldnt even put on an olympics without the manipulative intrusions of it.

Our only other alternative is demonized. Taxes.

[SDuderstadt]

10. I have no idea...

WTF you're rambling on about.

Excuse me, this is my stop.

[sylveste]

13. i think someone

is due beer and travel money.

[WingDinger]

14. In lieu of advertising, that would get my patronage.

[DeSwiss]

3. K&R

"At the beginning of World War II the US had a mere 600 or so first-class fighting aircraft. We rapidly overcame this short supply by turning out more than 90,000 planes a year. The question at the start of World War II was: Do we have enough funds to produce the required implements of war? The answer was no, we did not have enough money, nor did we have enough gold; but we did have more than enough resources.

It was the available resources that enabled the US to achieve the high production and efficiency required to win the war. Unfortunately this is only considered in times of war. In a resource-based economy all of the world's resources are held as the common heritage of all of Earth's people, thus eventually outgrowing the need for the artificial boundaries that separate people. This is the unifying imperative." ~ Jacques Fresco


"The reality is that institutional establishments, institutions of codified thought, and institutions of societal influence and power, meaning philosophies, dogmas on one hand and corporations and governments on the other, each have a high propensity to engage in denial, dishonesty, and corruption to maintain self-preservation and self-perpetuation. The result is a continuous culture lag where social progress by way of incorporating new socially-helpful scientific advancements is constantly inhibited. It is like walking through a brick wall as the established power orthodoxies continue to perpetuate themselves for their own interests and comforts.

The profit mechanism creates established orders which constitute the survival and wealth for a few groups of people. The fact is that no matter how socially beneficial new advents may be, they will be viewed in hostility if they threaten an established financially-driven institution. Meaning social progress can be a threat to the establishment. So to put this into a sentence: Abundance, sustainability and efficiency are the enemies of profit.

Progressive advancement in science and technology which can solve problems of inefficiency and scarcity once and for all, are in effect making the prior establishment's servicing of those issues obsolete. Therefore in a monetary system corporations aren't just in competition with each other, they're in competition with progress itself. That is why social-change is so difficult within a monetary system. In other words, the established monetary system refuses to allow free-flowing change." ~ Peter Joseph

http://www.thevenusproject.com">The Venus Project

[WingDinger]

6. The worst part is, it proves that capitalism is zero sum gain, as they vie for market share.

in extreme contrast to those fundamentalist religious, Libertarians.

[MilesColtrane]

8. deleted

forget it

[WingDinger]

9. That is correct, YOU have to pay for advertizing. Not them. YOU

Tax breaks for it are out of your pocket.

[MineralMan]

11. Hmm...somewhere, there is a logical step I'm missing in this

argument. Advertising has always been used to sell products. From the cockles and mussels seller singing in the street to the pharmaceutical companies singing on your TV. It's all the same. You can't buy what you don't know about.

[WingDinger]

12. I didnt even attempt to claim a workaround. just that it is gross

[TBF]

15. I was with you til the last sentence - "human nature"??

Human beings are social animals. Do you really think it is "human nature" to lie and deceive? It is not bad actors, my friend, it is the system that encourages such behavior. Get rid of the system and you'll see the possibility of real change.

[WingDinger]

16. Actually yes, I believe that it is human nature to lie and deceive.

And it is clear that you agree with me, even this point. The system, or status quo, is a reflection of human nature, or at least capitalizing on vulnerabilities of human nature.

[TBF]

17. No, quite the contrary.

I do believe people will perform the behaviors that are rewarded, particularly if they have no other choice for survival. Capitalism is not the "natural" reflection of how humans behave.

[WingDinger]

18. Capitalism makes greed the highest and most honorable virtue.

That is based also on flawed man, from biblical fame. Which itself is a reflection on human nature.