Discussion on Private Property and Civilized Society

Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Corruption in Government

2GreenEnergy super-supporter Cameron Atwood writes:

The most basic paradigms by which our societies now operate are far too often sourced in some deception or some novel and baseless belief.

Examples include the commodification of natural resources like water, forests, oil, gas, nutrition, shelter – as well as of birthrights like healthcare, safe and unrestricted passage, even government representation.

As Jean-Jacques Rousseau observed in The Social Contract and The Discourses…

“The first person who, having enclosed a plot of land, took it into his head to say this is mine, and found people simple enough to believe him, was the true founder of civil society. What crimes, wars, murders, what miseries and horrors would the human race have been spared, had someone pulled up the stakes or filled in the ditch and cried out to his fellow men: ‘Do not listen to this impostor. You are lost if you forget that the fruits of the earth belong to all and the earth to no one!’ “

I would dispute with Rousseau that such deceit was the founding of civil society, but his point is well taken.

Thanks very much for this.  Wow, I had forgotten that Rousseau was such a “radical.” The idea of private property is really the organizing principle in our society, and, more to the point, it’s what has laid at the basis of almost of all human productivity and innovation.

Having said that, I don’t view this as a black and white issue.  As we’re seeing now with extreme levels of wealth concentrated in fewer and fewer hands, allowing the super-rich to write laws that further consolidate their wealth has horrific effects on society.  I might feel differently is this were truly a meritocracy, where billionaires really were a thousand times more productive that millionaires, etc.  Of course, this isn’t at all the case; most of the wealth of the so-called “1%” has been passed down through the generations untouched.

Also, I wouldn’t say healthcare is a birthright.  I would say that universal healthcare is a feature of enlightened societies, and that, sadly, the U.S. happens not to fit that description. Similarly, I would say that the commodification of things like water is a feature of morally warped societies, like Sharia law, slavery, government-sponsored torture, and subjugation of women, etc.

 

 

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2 comments on “Discussion on Private Property and Civilized Society
  1. Breath on the Wind says:

    It is interesting I see universal health care as neither a birthright nor as a feature of “enlightened living.” But as a matter of self preservation for a society. The surest way for a pandemic to take hold in society is for a large percentage of the population to have little access to health care. So while the super rich may be concerned about people with hands in their pockets self preservation might demand that anyone who shares the same atmosphere as them have access to health care.

  2. Silent Running says:

    Well Framed Cameron enjoyed that mental and cultural exercise.

    Breath on Wind makes a Poignant Point on how it just might be in the self interest of many of the Uber Rich and Oligarchic Elites everywhere to balance things out as they are more Vulnerable than their money may delude them to think !

    We are no meritocracy -as honesty – smarts and hard work relationship with success is out of alignment and broken for sure. Things are Rigged to the max and a certain loud mouth wants to totally get rid of the small so called Inheritance tax in America which only affects 2 % or less of the Estates. Due to dollar threshold being raised a few times to spare small farms and businesses. Which was good balance I think.

    Only a very few pay inheritance tax so wealth grows grows

    But those same un informed american voters who fail to realize the better economics as well as the better social outcomes of some sort of National Health system also Fail to know that their estate is safe from any tax but since they remain uniformed they rush to support people who want to remove any taxes on the Oligarchic class etc. Cultural Poison Pills are like Cotton candy for the confused masses!

    So the beat goes on and so maybe Rousseau had some real insight into the hidden perils of lots of private property and the so called rights which accrue to the Point now that They and related Priviledges Trump both Common sense and the Common good and real Social Economics !
    More and More in our neo market social order this addiction to Myth keeps us Unfulfilled.
    Cameron much could be written on this subject and the inconsistencies and hypocritical applications of the role of property rights trumping all other rights …etc. Thanks