> What you fail to see is that BOTH capitalism AND communism, are ways
of
> FORCING humans to produce and buy goods and services, OR STARVE TO
DEATH.
You are correct. What we currently call "capitalism" is a engineered
way of
making people be productive, and it should set libertarian
coercometers to overload. However, when most people on this list talk
about "capitalism" they are talking of a system that measures a
persons worth rather than forcing equality, which I agree with. In
this sense it could also be the lack of any system (i.e. natural
selection.)
At the moment you could probably live for quite a long time for free,
in the future that time will be longer, one day you may even be able
to stretch to immortality.
> Therefore, it is not logical to say that the ONLY ALTERNATIVE to
> capitalism is slavery for humans.
No, robots could do it for us!
> In a Robotopia, only the robots, which may soon provide humans a
bounty
> of whatever we desire absolutely free, could be considered slaves.
And if robots are productive, then our economy needs to incourage
creativity.
> Next, look at what is happening in the browser wars.
Not you as well.
> Last week, Netscape anounced it will also give away its browser, plus
> make the source code for Version 5 available free to world on its
> website. Good old capitalist competition is at work again, driving
costs
> for browser users to zero. . .absolutely FREE. . .
Well, Netscape thinks there isn't any money in clients, it thinks the
money is in servers. They also think that this is what Microsoft
thinks, but they're wrong on both counts. Servers will be short lived
(thanks, to the wonder of decentralisation) and Microsoft already knows.
Microsoft is actually in a money making frenzy, because they can see
the market is collapsing around them. At the same time they're trying
to route themselves into the Web and whatever new economy it may
produce.
> Look at the web itself. From the users point of view, there are
tremendous
> amounts of goods and services that are already absolutely free. Look
> around the fast changing, high tech world we all share. It is not
much of
> a stretch to say:
>
> " Perhaps we should all realize that capitalism will soon become an
> absurdity and cease to exist. . ."
There will still be an 'economy' (in the sense that we will still be
able to apply economics to it, although a purpose built system of
trade may not exist.) What people tend to forget is that the Web *is*
an economy in itself (at an early stage of creation.) What this
economy will look like I'm not completely sure, any ideas?
--Wax
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