Simple Living

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Ideas and inspiration for living more simply. A place to share tips on living with less stuff, work, speed, or stress in return for gaining more freedom, time, self-reliance, and joy.

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Your value is not determined by your productivity. (lemmy.ml)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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In a capitalist world, it can be hard to remember this. But despite what you are pressured to think, your value as a person does not come through what material value you create for others.

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I think the misunderstanding here is: What does productivity mean?

I interpreted the OP to mean productivity as "capitalist productivity" - meaning, how much money can you make for your ~~king~~ boss. People can still be productive in lots of ways that aren't considered "capitalist productivity" - for example, I love to garden, take care of greenscapes, and grow food on a small scale. Some people might not be able to do that, but they are wise and great at navigating social situations, and act as the center of their community. Both of those are productive, but often are not "capitalist productive", if that makes any sense.

So I agree with both OP and you - a person's value isn't determined by their ability to produce capital.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Exactly. Far too many people misinterpreted this on /r/antiwork as well — they were never saying that everyone should sit around waiting on someone else to provide everyone for them; they were talking about ending the capitalist work paradigm.

Many people here have never read a shred of political theory, and it shows. People should start here. It explains just how much of the work we do under capitalism is unnecessary for the wellbeing of society, and only serves to enrich the capitalist class. It is very possible for us all to do less work, have more leisure, and still have plenty for everyone.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago

Exactly. That's what I meant by putting "something" in italics. You don't necessarily need to produce capitalist output in the current sense, but you need to contribute some value to a community unless you're fundamentally unable to. If you're unable to contribute (not unwilling) because of an disability or some other constraint, then I think the community should help you with your challenges. But those situations are very exceptional, since even disabled people can usually contribute quite a lot to society. I clarified in a comment lower down but someone removed it without explanation, even though it broke no rules, insulted no one, and clearly outlined the concepts of differing ideologies.