do you think you owe society anything.?

Started by dogtree December 4th, 2015 1:56 AM
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moon

they/them
Seen 14 Hours Ago
Posted 2 Days Ago
37,443 posts
15.5 Years
I have been living off Swedish society for years, studying. They have invested in me. Now I owe it to the world around me to be as great a scientist as I can, and move us all forward towards a better life in return. :3
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gimmepie

Age 27
Male
Australia
Seen 1 Day Ago
Posted 1 Day Ago
Society has supported me whilst I've not had the money to do so myself and will do so again soon enough. I think I definitely owe society some sort of contribution eventually as part of the education system hopefully, although I guess right now I contribute to culture?
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Psychic

Really and truly

Female
Seen April 10th, 2018
Posted March 11th, 2018
387 posts
15.5 Years
My hope is to contribute to society culturally by producing writing and other forms of art. Art is so incredibly important, as it's a huge part of our culture and history, it entertains and inspires us, and what a society values in terms of art can say a lot about it. I also like to give back to the community by volunteering sometimes.

I would like to add that I am privileged in that I can contribute to society in those ways - not everyone can do the above, and that's okay! But I do like to be able to give something back if I can. :>

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Somewhere_

i don't know where

Age 23
Male
somewhere (duh)
Seen June 5th, 2019
Posted March 17th, 2019
or you think everything has already been paid by you or your family.? police, nurse, doctor you
pay them by deduction of your income aka tax
Screw taxation. I do not consider it contributing to society.

I like voluntary work. I do many community service projects and everything of the sort. I love it!
If you wish to use society's services, then yes, you do kind of owe them something. However, I take issue with the fact that you are practically forced to owe them something because services offered by the public sector like emergency and police have little competition and are essentially a monopoly.

Sadly, it's not as clear cut as "don't pay, don't get" on many services and as much as I would like income tax to disappear and these programs be voluntarily funded by private and individual entities, people are now just too afraid of freedom and responsibility for that to be a reality.

inb4 kill urself carodin

gimmepie

Age 27
Male
Australia
Seen 1 Day Ago
Posted 1 Day Ago
If you wish to use society's services, then yes, you do kind of owe them something. However, I take issue with the fact that you are practically forced to owe them something because services offered by the public sector like emergency and police have little competition and are essentially a monopoly.

Sadly, it's not as clear cut as "don't pay, don't get" on many services and as much as I would like income tax to disappear and these programs be voluntarily funded by private and individual entities, people are now just too afraid of freedom and responsibility for that to be a reality.

inb4 kill urself carodin
It's not that people are afraid of freedom it's that voluntarily and privately funded services like police don't make any sense. Using the police as the example, if you expected them to be funded by volunteers you'd very quickly see the police force crumble due to lack of funding. It'd be even worse if they were privately funded, only the people who could pay would receive protection. We just discussed this issue at length in the PCNation thread, you should take a look.

Personally I think taxation and public services are the fairest way to go. I feel like people who don't agree with taxation just expect the world to give them something for nothing. Or alternatively, would be happy with in-efficient or unequal services that can be much better and more fairly provided by the government.
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Leviathan

What's the matter? Lives flashing before your eyes?

Age 29
Female
Ireland
Seen 1 Week Ago
Posted January 15th, 2023
1,103 posts
9.9 Years
I've been taught to believe that I've much to give back for all that I received growing up. Whilst this notion is understandable, it's now being drilled into me by particular family members who, shall we say, have grown bitter and cynical in their advanced years. I would not mind giving back, as it is a sort of due I feel obliged to cover, but when it's done for folk who frankly give you **** for thanks in return is hugely discouraging for me...

curiousnathan

Male
Australia
Seen October 18th, 2020
Posted October 5th, 2020
7,753 posts
13.7 Years
If anything I owe to my parents, but not to society.
But I'm sure your parents have taken something from society or at least, society has invested in them within which has assisted in your development/growth. Perhaps you directly owe your parents, whilst indirectly owing society?

I owe 8 euros to a family member. Does that count? <u<
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Somewhere_

i don't know where

Age 23
Male
somewhere (duh)
Seen June 5th, 2019
Posted March 17th, 2019
It's not that people are afraid of freedom it's that voluntarily and privately funded services like police don't make any sense. Using the police as the example, if you expected them to be funded by volunteers you'd very quickly see the police force crumble due to lack of funding. It'd be even worse if they were privately funded, only the people who could pay would receive protection. We just discussed this issue at length in the PCNation thread, you should take a look.

Personally I think taxation and public services are the fairest way to go. I feel like people who don't agree with taxation just expect the world to give them something for nothing. Or alternatively, would be happy with in-efficient or unequal services that can be much better and more fairly provided by the government.
I have done more research on private police if you would like to debate me privately. If you would like to read more on it, I would recommend searching for various Austrian economists such as Murray Rothbard or Dr. Walter Block. Rothbard has many of his works downloadable for free on the Mises Institute website. I can link it to you if ya want. :)

Taxation is theft and inherently wrong. "I feel like people who don't agree with taxation just expect the world to give them something for nothing." <-- that is very hypocritical. By wanting public services, you want monopolized and inefficient services to be given to you for no work. In a free market, you have to work. Call me greedy all you want, but no one deserves healthcare, police, or other services. I dont mean to smash on your opinion, and having public services are very reasonable, but please dont call people who dont want free stuff greedy.

Fen-Fen

Me but more fabulous

Age 24
Female
Colorado, USA
Seen 13 Hours Ago
Posted 1 Week Ago
354 posts
7.4 Years
I feel that I do owe society things as a future taxpayer, a law abiding citizen and as a person who wants to pursue a career in politics. However, that also means that society should be able to owe me things within reason that I would pay for such as education, healthcare and infrastructure. While I realize that as an individual society owes me nothing in regards to ensuring that I am always satisfied with life, it should be reasonable that the govt. has my back covered when it comes to my education so I am not crippled with student debt, healthcare so I may continue to live a long and healthy life, an equal justice system and, if it ever comes to that, food stamps to ensure I don't starve if I am falling on some hard times.

Spacy

Visitor from beyond...

Age 22
Female
America
Seen February 20th, 2016
Posted December 24th, 2015
96 posts
7.7 Years
But I'm sure your parents have taken something from society or at least, society has invested in them within which have assisted in your development/growth. Perhaps you directly owe your parents, whilst indirectly owing society?


hahaha omg I love you
Yeah I guess I do owe society in an indirect way. But I don't feel like I need to pay anything for it because at a young age I had no way of doing work to get money or any way to get my own food. It'd be like locking someone in your basement for years and when you finally release them, you expect them to pay for the food and clothes you gave them during that time when they couldn't leave to get those things themselves.

Sothis

Will this hand destroy you?

She/her
Firene
Seen 11 Hours Ago
Posted 14 Hours Ago
17,837 posts
9.9 Years
Not society as a whole, I never asked to be born.
But the people who've helped me and loved me, yes I feel like I owe them because they've been there for me.

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Saragraph

Everything for the OST.

Male
The Salty Spitoon
Seen October 3rd, 2022
Posted February 1st, 2016
94 posts
7.4 Years
Yes, I definitely owe society something. It's because the people I've interacted with and those interactions themselves I've become the person I'm now. And I'm happy with who I am.

I would love to enter the debate about taxes, but I feel like my English isn't good enough to express what I think and how I feel about it.
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Galho

Morning Bell

Male
Torres Vedras, Lisbon, Portugal
Seen April 21st, 2017
Posted November 27th, 2016
36 posts
7.4 Years
We all owe society for letting it shape ourselves: Many have contributed for my sadness and for my happyness. I owe some people in society my thanks and i hope one day i will be able to enlighten some people in this massive society to be themselves and learn from what they see with their own eyes, not with other's eyes. Society as an whole is sickening, but we are all trapped in there, and its our own job to form our own society that is formed with our common interests, after we learn who and what we like and who and what we dont.

Oddball_

Magical Senpai and god of the closet.

Age 24
They/Them
Seattle, WA
Seen 4 Weeks Ago
Posted May 17th, 2019
866 posts
8.5 Years
Do I owe society anything? Absolutely not and anyone who try's to tell me otherwise is having an absolute giraffe.

Now that I made myself sound like a complete jerk, allow me to explain. Society in general, and the human race in general, I owe absolutely nothing. I didn't ask to be born in this generation on this planet, I was kind of forced into it. Not that I would trade existence for anything, if that was possible, I like existing its pretty sweet.
There are people I do owe however. And its quite a lengthy list. I owe some caveman for inventing fire. I owe Thomas Edison for improving the light bulb. (He didn't actually invent it, but he made it last much longer.) I owe Bill Gates for founding windows, without which I wouldn't be using my computer right now. I owe every cow/chicken/pig i've ever eaten, I owe every tree to ever produce oxygen. The list goes on and on.

Should I have to contribute to the benefit of Society? No. Should I at least show my gratitude and appreciation to the people who actually deserve it? Absolutely, and this isn't to say I won't contribute to society. I try and entertain people when I can, but I am in no way doing so because I feel like I have to. I do so because I can.



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Seen February 4th, 2016
Posted February 4th, 2016
117 posts
8.1 Years
I don't see myself as being indebted to society, so no, I don't think I "owe" anything to anyone.

I take advantage of free healthcare and almost free education every day and I travel on roads paid for by the state, but on the other hand, I (like millions of other people) pay my taxes, I use private services and as such I keep them afloat, and I believe in giving back to the community and people who need it.

I'd say it's a pretty balanced relationship.

Livewire

Male
Sunnyshore City
Seen December 3rd, 2022
Posted August 2nd, 2019
14,091 posts
13.8 Years
We all owe people in some way, like Jonas Saulk for developing the Polio vaccine, Einstein, Pasteur, Newton. Darwin, etc., for their work furthering science, stuff like that. Realize that a lot people have done a lot of things for everybody else, and be appreciative, give back and help out in some way yourself or you should at least realize that we only got to where we are because of individual contributions to the whole. Like I alluded to earlier, ask your grandparents or great-grandparents if they feel indebted to somebody like Saulk or the Red Cross, Hospitals, etc., for curing Polio for them, lol.

shadowmoon522

Master of Darkness & Light

Age 32
Male
PA
Seen 2 Weeks Ago
Posted February 3rd, 2022
1,002 posts
10.8 Years
its a give and take process that lasts only until a governmental collapse.
in time all things shall fall to ruin, everyone will fade away as our dust breaths life into the earth which in turn sustains plants which will sustain other plants or animals
our copses feed various small critters and sustains their lives until they are eaten and help sustain what ever ate them's life.
regardless, human's don't need society in order to live. anyone can just go & transverse the land, killing animals they find & sustaining their lives off of them.
or they can just leech off the system via stealing from shops.
homeless guys have been known to do that from time to time because of the shelters not letting them in and they'd rather be in jail then in -32°F/-0°C weather.