Why slave auctions were more equitable than the modern employment scheme.

This argument (if you want to call it that, it's more like a random thought) rests on the following assumption:
If you consider your life as the sum of your available time, then it logically follows that your current employer (quite literally) owns you(r life, since they own your time. After all, your time is all that you have and nothing more).

Both slave owner and employer are your owners. That's where the similarties end.

Slaves were judged based on their physical fitness. It was an objective processes, pure and simple.
Employees today are coerced into putting up with a myriad of bullshit/mindgames, and any semblence of fairness is thrown out the window. Nepotism, familial wealth, "likeability" often take precedent over ability to produce results. Creating a harmonic, fraternity-esque team is more important than ability. In other words, purely subjective.

I guess that's the flaw of the human condition. We (despite our strongest intentions to be efficient) are all highly fallable, beat into submission by our (sometimes conflicting) emotions.

I'm just glad I was never hired (edit: was hired, but quickly fired, thankfully), nor will I ever hire.
One man working for himself, by himself, with himself.

[After all, a team is just there so "participants" can pass around the blame.
The ultimate deference of responsibility.
It's a shame (and mystery) as to why "teamwork" is regarded with such nobility.]

--

addendum : if you take into account inflation throughout the past few hundred years, the disparity between the ultra ultra wealthy of today and those in poverty is HIGHER than those of Thomas Jefferson's time between slave owners and slaves (when current societal wealth gaps are taken into consideration). The value of the rations/housing that slaves received is actually MORE than the average wages of today, in this context. in a philosophical sense, the "oppressed" slaves of yore had more "wealth" than the average American of today. #perspective

 

"If you consider your life as the sum of your available time, then it logically follows that your current employer (quite literally) owns you(r life, since they own your time. After all, your time is all that you have and nothing more)."

.....if you can quit your job your boss quite literally doesn't own your life. I'm not sure you understand how slavery worked....

Monkey see. Monkey Doo [Doo].
 

so I think you're getting to the cliche (and horribly incorrect) notion that in slavery, they "had no choice and were bound to work, regardless of self desire."

you obviously don't visit/interview people working in factory jobs. to assume they have free-will and are there voluntarily would make you a huge idiot.

these people (factory workers, laborers) LITERALLY HAVE NO CHOICE* they are bound financially, no different than slaves were bound authoritarianly (is that a word?)

*we're making the assumption they aren't suicidal and/or mentally dejected from society.

 
MonacoMonkey:
these people (factory workers, laborers) LITERALLY HAVE NO CHOICE

A factory worker can always go try to get a job in a different factory...

Or a factory worker can try to migrate to a different region with better opportunities. One of the main reasons why so many immigrants come to the US, get better jobs, get more educated

If nothing else, a person can take their chances with various illicit forms of work. Obviously unethical but tons of people do it and get away with it

In a purely literal sense, what you’ve said is incorrect

 

I kind get what you're trying to say, I think it may just be poor comparison and bad way to look at it/glass half empty.

Having a job is way different than slavery, employees get money, benefits, sick/vacation days, can do what they want with their free time and (usually) treated with respect.

I think people make a comparison like that for two reasons: 1. They hate their job and can't/don't know how to leave 2. They don't fit in to the culture of having a job (showing up at a certain time, following directions, being able to work with others)

Also, you can loosely make a comparison like that for anything; i.e., American football was like gladiator fights; working out is similar to torture; college loans are indentured servants....not which are true

 

People today have lost all concept of the value of free will. All of your above examples boil down to a lack of internal locus of control. Despite having more freedom and access to information than ever in history, our young generation has placed their entire fate into others' hands and delegated both responsibility and blame elsewhere.

Be excellent to each other, and party on, dudes.
 

You can quit a job without fear of getting shot or whipped. This is one of weakest arguments I have ever read in my life. One that can only be given by someone with an entirely warped sense of reality. I would definitely check into a mental institution if I was you. Between this and the suicidal thoughts, you really need it.

 

well I won't make you decide what's worse (the optimist in me wants to believe you have SOME brain.)

-the "fear" of getting shot or whipped -getting shot / whipped -having abolutely no food to feed yourself and your child. oh and living on the streets.

yes we're fortunate, but maybe all of you here should take some time to do some volunteer work. see how the "forgotten bottom" of our country live.

to believe these people have a "choice" whether or not to work is the joke of the millenia.

 
MonacoMonkey:
well I won't make you decide what's worse (the optimist in me wants to believe you have SOME brain.)

-the "fear" of getting shot or whipped -getting shot / whipped -having abolutely no food to feed yourself and your child. oh and living on the streets.

yes we're fortunate, but maybe all of you here should take some time to do some volunteer work. see how the "forgotten bottom" of our country live.

to believe these people have a "choice" whether or not to work is the joke of the millenia.

We May have to work, but you can get a new job. It’s really not complicated.
 
MonacoMonkey:
This argument (if you want to call it that, it's more like a random thought) rests on the following assumption: If you consider your life as the sum of your available time, then it logically follows that your current employer (quite literally) owns you(r life, since they own your time. After all, your time is all that you have and nothing more).

Between your title and this hilariously awful assumption...just...no...

Commercial Real Estate Developer
 

There's a difference between having no control over your life versus having some, which is what we have. I never claimed you are totally in control of your life you dock worker. If you assume we have as much control over our lives as fucking slaves, then you have probably mentally masturbated too far past the point of no return as to how edgy you think you are.

I'll give you an example of how much I think we're in control of our lives. If I spend north of $400k on my child's education just for them to want to find themselves and travel and never want to work, and then blame me for raising them incorrectly, I would probably kill them.

 

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