• @chonglibloodsport
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    16 months ago

    You can use your laptop to start the next TikTok. Your laptop is a means of production.

    • Cowbee [he/him]
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      36 months ago

      I understand. Collective Ownership entails collective management of Capital based on agreed-upon rules. It does not mean nobody owns anything.

      • @chonglibloodsport
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        26 months ago

        Where do you draw the line between capital and personal property?

          • @chonglibloodsport
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            26 months ago

            That’s not an answer. That’s just restating the name of your position.

            Here’s an example: suppose I buy a bunch of woodworking tools and put them in my garage. I now have a woodworking shop which I can use to make and sell furniture. Is that capital? Am I required to surrender my garage to the authorities?

            • Cowbee [he/him]
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              36 months ago

              Depends on what is democratically decided as the rule. The idea of buying a bunch of woodworking tools for the purpose of selling furniture is probably off the table (haha).

              Why would you want to?

              • @chonglibloodsport
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                16 months ago

                Because woodworking is a fun hobby that you can turn into a business. Because I value craftsmanship and attention to detail over mass-produced furniture. Because I believe in independent artisans, apprenticeships, and the sharing of knowledge.

                If you are in favour of a world where this is not possible then I want no part of that. That sounds like a horrific dystopia!

                I also believe you put far too much faith in democracy. Look at the democracies we have around the world today. Sure, they are not as bad as the totalitarian states but they are far from perfect. Democracies are also struggling from a crisis of faith in institutions. How are you going to build a collective society when everyone has lost faith in institutions?

                • Cowbee [he/him]
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                  36 months ago

                  You can have a hobby, why do you need to make it a business?

                  Democracy is better than a lack of democracy.

                  • @chonglibloodsport
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                    16 months ago

                    You make it a business to support yourself and your family. Otherwise you won’t have much time to devote to it and you won’t be as good as it.

                    Anyway, how are you going to get anyone in a democracy to vote away their own property rights? The Soviets certainly did not achieve that. They used violent revolution to achieve their ends. We all saw how that ended up. The most stalwart opponents of Marxism today are those who knew what it was like to live in the Soviet Union. A system where hard work is devalued and freeloading predominates.