Not true. Slave based economies are generally stifled economies. In which you have a wealthy elite that live in luxury but are usually cash poor because it is expensive to maintain slaves. A large section of free but poor who have few job prospects because the upper class don't want to pay wages. And then the slave class which don't actually benefit the economy.
The rise of the middle class, professionalism and the need for skilled labor is what leads to the decline of slavery.
I think it also had to do with the rise of a cash economy. Slavery would hinder that, but it does make sense under a mostly-barter economy. A slave might not "get paid" in money, but his owner is responsible for feeding, clothing, and housing him in lieu of that. The owner might not have "money" and barters for everything himself! Money existed but only served to determine how much things were worth against itself, and mostly only the merchant class used it regularly. Until they started actually printing cash (and even in the USA, there were little regional banks and even businesses printed their own money until a central bank system was made. Then and only then did money become a regular thing for everyone.)
I don't think cash was quite so common as it became to be in the 1800s, and wasn't the real measure of one's wealth. Land was.
And I bet the original biggest opposition to slavery was from people who were forced to actually look for work to make that new cash. "Fuck those scabs, if I can't have job security, why should those niggers have any."
Then might moving into a cashless economy signal a return to slavery? We do happen to be witnessing oligarchs and other 'elites' buying up immense amounts of land right now.
Oh, yeah, for sure. Notice how they want to make everything a service, and nickel and dime us out. They're basically on their way to making society into one big Skinner Box. Push the right pedals, get your rewards.
The west was able to do away with slavery because we invented labor saving machines that negated the need for large amounts of unpaid labor.
Not true. Slave based economies are generally stifled economies. In which you have a wealthy elite that live in luxury but are usually cash poor because it is expensive to maintain slaves. A large section of free but poor who have few job prospects because the upper class don't want to pay wages. And then the slave class which don't actually benefit the economy.
The rise of the middle class, professionalism and the need for skilled labor is what leads to the decline of slavery.
I think we are both right, it is one of those multifaceted Issues.
Christianity definitely influenced it. Slaves just weren't as cost effective too, forget about machines, Blacks just aren't great workers.
I think it also had to do with the rise of a cash economy. Slavery would hinder that, but it does make sense under a mostly-barter economy. A slave might not "get paid" in money, but his owner is responsible for feeding, clothing, and housing him in lieu of that. The owner might not have "money" and barters for everything himself! Money existed but only served to determine how much things were worth against itself, and mostly only the merchant class used it regularly. Until they started actually printing cash (and even in the USA, there were little regional banks and even businesses printed their own money until a central bank system was made. Then and only then did money become a regular thing for everyone.)
I don't think cash was quite so common as it became to be in the 1800s, and wasn't the real measure of one's wealth. Land was.
And I bet the original biggest opposition to slavery was from people who were forced to actually look for work to make that new cash. "Fuck those scabs, if I can't have job security, why should those niggers have any."
Then might moving into a cashless economy signal a return to slavery? We do happen to be witnessing oligarchs and other 'elites' buying up immense amounts of land right now.
Oh, yeah, for sure. Notice how they want to make everything a service, and nickel and dime us out. They're basically on their way to making society into one big Skinner Box. Push the right pedals, get your rewards.