When you talk about jobs that only fulfill ideological needs, I am immediately reminded of my memories of the Soviet Union.
What you describe isn't capitalism at all. It's a contortion of business, a contortion of human life even, made to serve the dictates of the government first and above all else. There is no free exchange of goods and services with the presence of external coercion, especially from a government.
Additionally I am not referring to free market. Nor am I referring to the abject myth of free trade.
As for "society", I don't think that's correct at all. Society has no claim and cannot legitimately lay claim to the success and possessions of individuals. Horses, and taming animals in general, is something that existed far before any idea of society. Same thing with farming. Simply put, transactions are not deterministic, nor do they owe their existence to factors outside of the transaction.
By definition, they can't. If a man offers to buy a lock of my hair, and I give it to him, I don't owe society anything. This doesn't cease to be less true merely because what I'm selling isn't a literal part of my own body.
As for history. As you mentioned the quote is from a century prior. Degeneracy existed in abundance a hundred years ago from our perspective. It certainly existed in the author's past as well, far more than he, or you, realize. For goodness sakes at one point entire continents conducted heart eating, demon worshipping child sacrifices. Present degeneracy is not new or novel, we're merely proximate to a large and loud pustule of it emerging into view. Once excised, they'll go hide again for a few decades.
When you talk about jobs that only fulfill ideological needs, I am immediately reminded of my memories of the Soviet Union.
What you describe isn't capitalism at all. It's a contortion of business, a contortion of human life even, made to serve the dictates of the government first and above all else. There is no free exchange of goods and services with the presence of external coercion, especially from a government.
Additionally I am not referring to free market. Nor am I referring to the abject myth of free trade.
As for "society", I don't think that's correct at all. Society has no claim and cannot legitimately lay claim to the success and possessions of individuals. Horses, and taming animals in general, is something that existed far before any idea of society. Same thing with farming. Simply put, transactions are not deterministic, nor do they owe their existence to factors outside of the transaction.
By definition, they can't. If a man offers to buy a lock of my hair, and I give it to him, I don't owe society anything. This doesn't cease to be less true merely because what I'm selling isn't a literal part of my own body.
As for history. As you mentioned the quote is from a century prior. Degeneracy existed in abundance a hundred years ago from our perspective. It certainly existed in the author's past as well, far more than he, or you, realize. For goodness sakes at one point entire continents conducted heart eating, demon worshipping child sacrifices. Present degeneracy is not new or novel, we're merely proximate to a large and loud pustule of it emerging into view. Once excised, they'll go hide again for a few decades.