politics

Yeah, well fuck her IMHO. And the oil companies too. They're rich enough to endure a few months of economic leverage applied where it counts. If they squeal (and we know they will), well then they need to be called out and forced to publicly take a side in this whole situation.

EDIT: uncensored :P

I hear those things are awful loud

Reliable, ubiquitous, affordable public transportation is an impediment to segregation via gentrification and suburbs. So Republicans won't promote that.

This is america.

We are going to build hellhole dormitories for workers to live on site at the kroger LONG before we acknowledge that investing in public transportation would have benefits.

Oh, and we'll probably buy a shit ton of teslas so that every county is required to have a fleet for "special" employees.

the per capita health care expenditure for the american for-profit capitalist system, that doesn't even cover everyone--or everything, is at least 2x that of other 'western' nations that have national health care systems.

single payer, tax funded health care for all would literally pay for itself just from taking what's already being spent on health care and putting it into the new program.

subsidies for oil or any other industry are not taking money away from that non-existent health care system. it doesn't need any.

But I’m curious what’s the equivalent on the utopian alternative to capitalism. Is there currency at all, and if there is, does the government set prices and the exchange rate like in the former Soviet Union?

In all definitions of a utopian society I think we're talking about a post scarcity world. If you're casting far enough into the future, we have infinite supplies of clean energy and technology to take that energy and directly turn it into any kind of matter we desire (like Star Trek replicators). At that point, why would your society need money?

Obviously there are lesser versions of that of post-scarcity where at least anyone's basic needs are met (food, shelter, clothing, healthcare), and anything you want beyond the basics would require extra effort on the part of the person. This version would have something like UBI (Universal Basic Income) and, yes it would have money. There wouldn't really be a need for any kind of price fixing because anything you'd want to buy would not be required for life or health. There would also be no requirement to work if you are satisified in life with just food, clothing, shelter and healthcare.

🎼🎵Is he a dot? Or is he a speck? When he's underwater does he get wet? Or does the water get him instead? Nobody knows. Particle man.🎶