Freeloaders

 

Freeloaders kinda bug me.

I suppose to have a discussion about freeloaders you'd first have to define your terms, and "freeloader" is a pretty loaded term.  A quick internet seach turns up this

free·load·er

/ˈfrēˌlōdər/

Learn to pronounce

noun

INFORMAL•DEROGATORY

1. a person who takes advantage of others' generosity without giving anything in return.

 That works for me.  

Let's talk about who is not a freeloader.
I think we can all agree that while babies might meet the technical definition of the term, babies are not freeloaders.  Babies are wee humans who need us, who will learn, and grow, and are cherished members of our family.  Elders in care facilities might seem to meet that definition, but again, these are cherished members of our families and whose lives have contributed to our collective wellbeing. 
What about people who use social services like Medicaid, Medicare, SNAP, etc?  Nope, not freeloaders either.  These people are making use of public services that were created to support people in need.  Nearly every person who use these services are either adults who have worked and paid into these services, or are minors.  These services have been created to better conditions for all of us individually as well as our nation collectively.
Children attending public school?  Nope, not free loaders, citizens using a system we have decided benefits not just them but all of us.  An educated citizenry is better than an ignorant one.
Veterans using VA benefits?  Quite the opposite, there will never be enough to pay back what they have given to all of us.
You get the picture.

Let's talk about who is a freeloader.
That friend who "lets" you by his drink every single time, and never remembers his wallet when it's time to pay for dinner.  That one uncle who borrowed your car, crashed it, barely told you about it, never compensated you, and never brought up the subject again.  The friend who borrowed your treasured copy of The Hobbit, never returned it, and claims to have forgotten all about it... ya those folks are free loaders.

Who are freeloaders? 
 People who cheat on their taxes. 
Corporations that use our roads to ship their goods, hire citizens educated in our public schools,  then pay those workers so little that even a full time worker needs welfare to get by, and then use every loophole to pay as little tax as possible.
Millionaires and billionaires who got rich using our resources and our labor then pay off politicians to write laws that favor them even more. 
Politicians who get government paid benefits for life after making laws that they and their handlers will profit from.
A millionaire president who has paid $750 annual tax while signing orders that harm his own people - those are the freeloaders.

And I'm sick of it.

The only way our system works is if we all participate, accept our own responsibility, and meet our obligations.  A good citizen pays their taxes.  A good citizen votes.  Every single time.  

It's literally a basic obligation of being an adult part of our society.

VOTE

We all get free together

We're not free until we're all free.  We all get free together.

You know how sometimes you see things in your media stream, and the seemingly random juxtaposition suddenly refocuses something and then you see relationships where you didn't before?

Ya.  That.

There's this, and this article about improving education.


We're not free until we're all free.  We all get free together.

Then there was this article followed by a discussion about "identity politics" and a facebook comment from an amazing intelligent young man I really respect about how "identity politics" is going to bring down the Democratic party.  In my experience, all politics is identity politics.  It's just white-identity-politics is called "politics".  The white experience is considered the norm, so anything else is dismissed as "identity politics".

We're not free until we're all free.  We all get free together.

Then I remembered a story about OXO good grips I heard on NPR.  OXO products were designed for people with arthritis, but it turned out that a really good design was better for a lot of people.

We're not free until we're all free.  We all get free together.

Designing a good product, a good system, or a good policy, takes a lot of work.  It takes time and energy.  It's so  tempting to say "good enough", we got the worst of it, dust our hands and call it done.  So tempting.  I get it, we're tired.  I'm tired.

But the extra effort to really make it better for everyone, to make it equitable and not just convenient, not even just equal, but truly equitable, it does make it better for everyone.  Even those who didn't expect to benefit from it do.

We're not free until we're all free.  We all get free, together.

Econ101

This morning at the breakfast table we were talking about economics and capitalism.  Yes.  I know.  We're nerds.  But, since FireLord has been busy teaching full time at the maker space summer camp, it was the first breakfast we'd been able to have together for a week.
And somehow that makes it... normal?  Normal for us anyway.

Anyway. set scene:  Hot Dog, Lego Kid, FireLord, and I  - eating waffles, talking over the Wall Street Journal.

Economics.  Capitalism.
What works and what doesn't.
The conclusion we came to is that capitalism isn't great, it creates winners and losers, the risks aren't born equally, and it's easily corrupted.  BUT, it works better than anything else we've figured out, especially when you're dealing with huge numbers of people, IF there are certain checks and balances put into place.

It works when you have rule of law, a fair and functional judicial system, non-corrupt and unbiased law enforcement, and controls on monopolistic practices.  It works when workers are truly free agents, able to make choices about what work they're willing to do for what price.  It works when there is one-vote one-person and your voice actually matters.  (Yes, I'm aware we're mixing up governance w/ economics and that they're different, but they're intertwined in this country, and I'm not a f'n PhD)

It doesn't work when the laws are applied (or not) in arbitrary, capricious, and or biased ways.  It doesn't work when those in positions of power are able to use their power for personal gain, to avoid the consequences of their actions, and/or to abuse and take advantage of others.  It doesn't work when companies become "too big to fail".  It doesn't work when companies create cartels to control supply and cost of goods.  It doesn't work when companies don't bear the true cost of production.  It doesn't work when people aren't free agents, when they can't move jobs for improved pay/conditions/benefits.  It doesn't work when a corporation counts as a person, when an individuals vote doesn't matter.  It doesn't work when people feel like there is no chance to improve their situations.

For capitalism to work we need things like police, the judicial system, laws protecting competition (anti-monopoly).  This need for balance is why there are some things that we all pitch in for when competition doesn't work, things like schools, utilities, commodities, etc. 

When the system is unbalanced, when people stop trusting the system, when there is a huge difference between the haves and the have-nots, things can get ugly. 

There's always going to be tension between a laissez faire market and regulations.  The pendulum swings back and forth, not in a reaction to what's happening but in a reaction to what happened in the recent past (or what was perceived to have happened).  But if it swings to far, we will all suffer, one way or the other.

Strawberry Economics

A dear friend (uncharacteristically) complained, asking "Why do strawberries have to be so expensive out of season?" "It's not fair that only rich people get strawberries in the winter!" I didn't have much of an answer for her. In my usual style, I'm not so brilliant off the cuff. After a little thought, here's my answer.

I'm pretty sympathetic to the desire for fresh fruit at all times. If you substituted sweet cherries for strawberries, I might be up in arms myself. ;-) We are lucky to live where it is possible to have fresh fruit and veggies year round, almost irregardless of the season. But, there is a price to pay for this, and not all the cost is financial.
(Can you tell I've been reading Kingsolvers "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle?"
http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.org/, well worth the time! )

There is a pretty clear reason strawberries and other fruit is more expensive out of season. There is less of it available locally, so supply and demand would easily explain the extra expense. In addition, most of the fresh produce we eat out of season is actually shipped in from elsewhere, where it is in season. So we are paying not only for the food, it's production, harvest, and packaging, we are also paying extra for fuel and man hours to ship it from whatever gorgeous, warm clime it grew in.

Indeed, the money we pay for our food is only a fraction of what the farmer and farm workers who worked so hard to grow it receive. If we want to support safe and healthy food production in our country, thus improve our local economy, our environment, our homeland security, and our own health, there are many things we can do. We can grow our own food, buy locally, use community supported agriculture, frequent farmers markets, and recognize that it is, indeed, a great treat to be able to eat fresh fruit and vegetables year around. (Ya, ya, again with the "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle"! LOL You gotta read the book.)

I grow strawberries in our yard. There is nothing quite like the taste of a vine ripened, sun warmed, fresh picked, strawberry. I'd go pretty far to get one. I'm glad to have some right outside my door. Considering that berries are among the produce most treated with pesticides, growing your own, if possible, is a no brainer. Still, it's not completely without effort. After a day of weeding, mulching and picking, my back feels stiff and tired, my legs can get shaky. I'm lucky, I get to rest when I need to, and I can come and go as I please

Our family doesn't depend upon this physical labor for our livelihood. My gratitude goes out to those whose livelihoods include growing, harvesting and processing our produce.
Thank you for the food I eat, each and every day.