The complementary fallacy also in the article: the amount of work required has a lower bound of zero.
Survival isn't free. We consume (destroy) just to maintain a lowest-common-denominator status quo. The Red Queen was right: we need to run (work) hard just to keep up with staying where we are (98 degrees F). To keep two people at that state of basic survival while one does nothing to produce whatever's needed to maintain their fair share, the other has to work twice as hard - and without some suitable incentive, the one working will lose interest in doing so.
Yes, we're in a wealthy society. We're at this level because everyone, on the whole, works hard and pitches in. If a growing subset decide to just bask in the luxury, it's all going to come crashing down. As tax season approaches, I'm reminded of how much is taken from me - making it hard to do what I consider essential for my family, and making me reconsider my role in society; take enough from me, and I can go "off grid" pretty fast. Remember the goose who laid golden eggs.
Survival isn't free. We consume (destroy) just to maintain a lowest-common-denominator status quo. The Red Queen was right: we need to run (work) hard just to keep up with staying where we are (98 degrees F). To keep two people at that state of basic survival while one does nothing to produce whatever's needed to maintain their fair share, the other has to work twice as hard - and without some suitable incentive, the one working will lose interest in doing so.
Yes, we're in a wealthy society. We're at this level because everyone, on the whole, works hard and pitches in. If a growing subset decide to just bask in the luxury, it's all going to come crashing down. As tax season approaches, I'm reminded of how much is taken from me - making it hard to do what I consider essential for my family, and making me reconsider my role in society; take enough from me, and I can go "off grid" pretty fast. Remember the goose who laid golden eggs.