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The Injustice of Poverty Second Edition Chapter 1: Industrial Society and Civilization By Punkerslut
Section I: Preface to the Second Edition A reader who has read the previous edition of the book will notice a significant difference in both the setup and the content. While the first edition had a great deal of statistics, covering the various hypothetical situations of laborers working under minimum wage and the amount of wealth workers are paid, the second edition elaborates more upon important data and the integral parts of the theory, encompassing volumes more of relevant points. Also, an obvious difference between the two editions is a change in the title. The first edition was entitled "Class War," while the second edition was entitled "Class Conscious: The Injustice of Poverty." Eventually, I may come to publish another book that is simply covering the primary comparisons of economic statistics. While it may be simple to discover a chart explaining the legal minimum wage as it applies to different states, it is an entirely different thing to have a paper comparing the income of a minimum wage to the poverty level of American citizens. With that, I hope that the second edition improved upon the first, in its ability to illustrate ideas more creatively and simply, in its poetic usage of human language, and most of all, in its ability to convince the reader of the position I hold in the matter of socio-economics. Section II: Purpose of this Book It seems to be the trend of authors these days to publish books that are a meld of opinion, critique, enlightened ideas, and facts. If one were to isolate the facts from these books and the primary ideas, the books would lose 90% of their volume. That is one thing that I hope to avoid, among all, with this work. Right from the outset, I am going to tell you the purpose of this book. I believe in the theory and practice of Communism as an economic system. I believe that public interest for the welfare of all, rather than private interest for the wealthy of few, is the ultimate when it comes to creating a humane society. In our world and in our era, it seems that anything can be done with the aid of technology. And though this technology aids us in our technical productive work, it does not solve our social problems, it does not eliminate the economic qualms, nor does it sway the errors of our political system. Through this book, I am going to demonstrate the basic claims of why I believe in a Communist system, and more thoroughly defining exactly what I mean by the term Communism or Capitalism or Socialism. I will justify my claims only through reason, evidence, and logic. I only require that my reader has an open mind, and a willing heart. A brief overview of the chapters... The first chapter will cover the use of technology in society, setting up the basis of civilization as a cooperative effort. The second chapter will describe the mechanics of a Capitalist economy. Chapters 3-4 will cover the history of Capitalism as it effected the worker in society, chapters 5-6 will cover the history of Capitalism as it effected the consumer in society, and chapters 7-8 will cover the history of Capitalism as it was the cause of poverty. I have sought out books that cover the result of Capitalism as it effected society, using direct historical sources to prove their claims. All that I could find were very vague history books. Because of this, chapters 3-8 can very well be viewed as the history of society under the economy of Capitalism. Chapter 9 will deal with the theory of Communism, and how it would satisfy the desires of society much more efficiently and justly. Chapter 10 deals with the economic result of Communism, as it would occur in practice based on current available information. Finally, chapter 11 will deal with arguments against the theory. With all the bases covered on the case I am making for Communism, chapter 12 will act as an ending note to readers. It is true that chapters 3-8 are almost purely history, while other chapters heavily rely on historical references. This book may seem more like a history lesson in industrial and post-industrial society than a case for Communism or any economic system. While it is true that history plays a significant role in this text, it is primarily because history is the only form of proof that an economist or sociologist can bring up to make his case. Without it, my arguments would be nearly null and void. If any of these terms are confusing or otherwise seem to be vague, I assure my reader that there is no need to worry about this at all right now. They may seem vague, but the point of an overview is not precision. When I speak of the term Socialism here, one may ask, "Scientific Socialism or Regulatory Socialism?" When I speak of the term Communism here, one may ask, "Communism as it was practiced by Christians in the 1800's, or Communism as it was practiced by Mao, Lenin, and Stalin?" I assure the reader that such questions will be answer with good time. Section III: Introduction In this first chapter, I have one statement to contend. I believe that by working together, we can produce more, than when working apart. I make this statement without it being attached to any political theories or ideals of justice. Simply explained, I believe that when a group of people work together, they can produce more than that same number of people working individual, or they can work less and produce the same. But, not only do I believe that working together increases our productivity, but I believe that the usage of technology will still improve our ability to produce. By working together, we can produce this technology that will allow us a better ability to utilize the resources that we are provided with. Some may question, though, the actual relevance to a work of economics. I imagine that there are few who doubt the truth of what I am contending, but it is a foundation upon which the rest of my ideas will be built. I imagine that if this statement were able to be disproven, then the validity of the rest of my economical theory will be thrown into question. So, it is the intent of the first chapter to proven, beyond a doubt, the following two statements: by working together, we produce more than when working apart, and that by using technology, our productivity increase. Section IV: The Evidences (Historical) What is a tool and what is the nature of technology? Tools and technology are ideas, crafted to our physical world, that allow us a better grasp of completing tasks. Several trees may be of little use to someone, but once cut down, sawed into planks, and built into a house, they provide a use. It may take 5 days to fashion a tool with hand-power, out of local raw materials, but it would only take 1 day to fashion that tool if other tools were available, and you could fashion 500 of those tools in a day if you had a manufacturing plant. The amount of labor required to produce the same desired result is lowered with the aid of tools and technology. Productivity increases. To quote Nicholas Barbon, "The Use of Things, are to supply the Wants and Necessities of Man: There are Two General Wants that Mankind is born with; the Wants of the Body, and the Wants of the Mind..." [*1] Not only does the usage of tools aid in production, but so does specialization of labor. If one person labors on one specific stage of a product, then that person will become proficient at it. Not only that, but there will not be the wasted time between the stages that often occurs. With one person proficient at each stage of making a product, with the aid of tools and technology, their productivity will significantly rise. There are some who doubt this, or hold skepticism towards productivity as an aim, but I hope to prove beyond a doubt that the usage of tools and technology are in fact helpful towards lowering labor required to produce items that service our needs. In 1683, Matthew Hale described the conditions of individuals working in workshops that were set up to provide labor for the unemployed. In the mid-1600's, 14 people working together in a mill could produce 32 yards of cloth in three weeks. These people would be divided into three weavers and spoolers, two breakers, six spinners, one fuller and burler, one sheer-man, one parter and picker. The first 32 yards would take two months, though, in a matter of becoming accustomed to machinery and the type of labor. Given that they work all year round, this would result in 17 32-yard rolls of cloth, or a total of 544 yards a year. This would amount to approximately 39 yards of cloth per person per year. [*2] The amount of cloth that could be produced by a single person without the aid of specialization, or without the aid of tools, but just raw cotton, is a dismal estimation. Nicholas Barbon describes the use of specialization and technology as it applies to economic fluctuations in the 1600's...
In 1690, William Petty wrote, "...one Man by Art may do as much work, as many without it; viz, one Man with a Mill can grind as much Corn, as twenty can pound in a Mortar; one Printer can make as many Copies, as an Hundred Men can write by hand..." [*4] and elsewhere he has written, "...a Windmill may he set up, and hy its heing moist and vaporous, there is always wind stirring over it, by which advantage the labor of many thousand Hands is saved, forasmuch as a Mill made by one Man in half a year, will do as much Labor, as four Men for Five Years together." [*5] Of the combination of men, he has written, "Those who have the command of the Sea Trade, may Work at easier Freight with more profit, than others at greater: for as Cloth must be cheaper made, when one Cards, another Spins, another Weaves, another Draws, an- other Dresses, another Presses and Packs; than when all the Operations above-mentioned, were clumsily performed by the same hand..." [*6] Of those who are not among the society of men, he has written, "...those who live in Solitary places, must be their own Soldiers, Divines, Physicians, and Lawyers; and must have their Houses stored with necessary Provisions (like a Ship going upon a long Voyage,) to the great wast, and needless expence of such Provisions." [*7] In the 1700's, David Hume wrote...
Also in the 1700's, Thomas Paine wrote, "...the natural state is without those advantages which flow from agriculture, arts, science and manufactures." [*9] In 1767, James Steuart wrote the book "An Inquiry into the Principles of Political Economy," of which he gave countless examples of the usage of technology aiding production. With the use of technology, he has written, "I now suppose man to add his labour and industry to the natural activity of the soil: so far, as by this he produces an additional quantity of food, so far he lays a foundation for the maintenance of an additional number." [*10] -- "...this [farming] will prove a more certain and more extensive fund of subsistence, than the precarious productions of spontaneous fruits, which cannot be increased at discretion, and in proportion to demand..." [*11] -- "Another advantage of cities is, the necessity arising from thence of having great roads, and these again prove a considerable encouragement to agriculture." [*12] -- "...the making of roads and navigable canals must advance population, as they contribute to the advancement of agriculture." [*13] In general, on the theory of using technology to aid production, he has said, "Is it not plain, that when the earth is not improved, it cannot produce so much nourishment for man as when it is?" [*14] and, "...the necessity of introducing every method of abridging labour and expence, in order to supply the wants of luxurious mankind, is absolutely indispensable, according to modern policy, according to experience, and according to reason." [*15] Pointing out a specific example of this policy, he writes, "...by using the spade and rake, instead of the plough and harrow, the lands of our island might be brought to produce with more abundance..." [*16] On the hypothetical example that society was not allowed to use technology or tools, he writes, "Were the earth therefore uncultivated, the numbers of mankind would not exceed the proportion of the spontaneous fruits which she offers for their immediate use, or for that of the animals which might be the proper nourishment of man." [*17] In 1815, Thomas Malthus wrote, "There is no person in the least acquainted with political economy, but must be aware that the advantages resulting from the division of labour, as applicable to nations as well as individuals, depend solely and entirely on the power of exchanging subsequently the products of labour." [*18] and elsewhere, "...if merely the best modes of cultivation, now in use in some parts of Great Britain, were generally extended, and the whole country was brought to a level, in proportion to its natural advantages of soil and situation, by the further accumulation and more equable distribution of capital and skill; the quantity of additional produce would be immense, and would afford the means of subsistence to a very great increase of population." [*19] Also in the year 1815, Jean-Charles-Leonard Simonde de Sismondi wrote, "Thus men, combined in society, produced more than if each had laboured separately; and they preserve better what they have produced, because they feel the value of it better." [*20] Speaking of mankind, he wrote, "It invents machines, in which the wind, the fall of water, the expansion of steam, are substituted for the power of limbs..." [*21] Of society, he writes, "All men are mutually necessary to each other." [*22] Specifically citing one example, he says, "The invention of the stocking frame, by means of which one man does as much work as a hundred did before, was a benefit for humanity, only because, at the same time, the progress of civilization, of population, and of wealth, increased the number of consumers." [*23] In a bit of a lengthier passage, he wrote...
In 1825, Thomas Hodgskin, a staunch and valiant defender of the oppressed, would write, "By our increased skill and knowledge, labour is now probably ten times more productive than it was two hundred years ago..." [*27] and "...since Mr Watt's improvements on the steam engine one man can perform as much work with these instruments as ten men did before." [*28] In a lengthy section, he would write...
In 1830, Nassau Senior would give a lecture to a university, in which he would state, "I was shown at Birmingham a small screw, which, in the manufacture of corkscrews, performed the work of fifty-nine men; with its assistance one man could cut a spiral groove in as many corkscrew shanks as sixty men could have cut in the same time with the tools previously in use." [*31] In a longer section, he would write...
The 1800's marked the greatest development that political economy would receive. It would be the same century that the philosophy of Karl Marx would rise. In one of his pamphlets, in 1847, he would write...
It would be in the year 1848 that Marx would write the magnificent "Manifesto of the Communist Party." In it, he would write...
A partner in many of Marx's works, Friedrich Engels would offer his contribution to the idea of political economy. In 1876, he would write...
In 1899, Thorsten Veblen would discuss the rise of civilization, writing, "With the use of tools the possibility of his acquiring a different disposition gradually began, but even then the circumstances favoring the growth of a contentious disposition supervened only gradually and partially." [*36] In 1902, John McDowell would write an article discussing the life of a miner. In it, he that a miner could procure twelve to fifteen tons of coal, each day, with the aid of modernized equipment. [*37] In 1910, a collection of articles by Henry Demarest Lloyd would be published (seven years after his death) in a book entitled, "The Lords of Industry." In it, he wrote, "Though coal is an article of commerce greater in volume than any other natural product in the United States carried on railroads, amounting to not less than 330,000,000 tons a year; and though the appliances for its transportation have been improved and the cost cheapened every year, so that it can be handled with less cost and risk than almost any other class of freight..." [*38] In 1930, L.F. Giblin would deliver an inaugural speech in Australia, saying...
The authors of the past, covering all centuries, have universally confirmed the efficiency of technology and tools in accomplishing labor. By using a pickaxe instead of bare hands, or a rock, a person will more effectively mine coal, and by using great, massive machines instead of a pickaxe, a person will mine coal even more effectively. The same analogy can be compared to any other field: agriculture, manufacturing, among all other industries. While it is confirmed by a great deal of authors of the past, the question of the efficiency of machinery and technology, of all forms that it make take, in our modern world, is still unanswered. It is in the next section that I hope to answer this question. Section V: The Evidences (Modern) When examining the growth of technology and science in the modern century, we are really standing before awe-inspiring inventions and discoveries. Physics and chemistry are applied to the different fields of study, and new labor-saving devices are developed, through the ingenious of some lone scientists and inventors. We are on the dawn of an era where skyscrapers are still impressive and commonplace, where factories are capable of producing one thousand times as much as people could centuries ago, where the spirit of innovation and enterprise is inherent in the minds of all the people -- and we start to think, even if for just a few solitary moments, that anything is possible. There is no bridge that cannot be built, no idea that cannot be manifested with earthly materials -- no monument to human ingenuity that cannot be constructed. With this, we march towards a brighter future, where there is no dilemma that cannot be solved, no ideal that cannot be reached. The International Trade Administration records the amount of workers and the value of shipments of each manufacturing industry in the United States of America. By analyzing the amount of wealth is produced by how many laborers, we can discover how much wealth each worker is personally responsible for creating -- but, we also see what one worker is capable of producing, only by working alongside other workers with the use of technology. The workers are divided into two groups: total employment and production workers. Total employment includes workers who are not involved in producing anything, such as managerial positions among other things. Production workers, though, are those who are responsible for producing the actual product. In the food manufacturing industry, there is a total of 1,506,000 workers (1,150,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $413,000,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $274,236.38 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $359,130.43 worth of shipments. Of course, what does it exactly mean, when we measure the amount of money that is produced per worker? It is a very nominal meaning, having no solitary inference on value. So, to draw an analogy, I'll compare how many products a worker has produced a year, based on the amount of wealth they have created. A good comparison item is a loaf of bread, at the cost of $2.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 137,118 loaves of bread, or each production worker has produced 179,565 loaves of bread. [*40] In the beverage and tobacco product manufacturing industry, there is a total of 175,000 workers (94,500 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $106,943,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $611,102.85 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $1,131,671.95 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a pack of cigarettes, at the cost of $2.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 305,551 packs of cigarettes, or each production worker has produced 565,836 packs of cigarettes. [*41] In the textile mills industry, there is a total of 337,000 workers (286,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $51,846,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $153,845.69 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $181,279.72 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is square yard of cotton, at the cost of $3.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 51,281 square yards of cotton, or each production worker has produced 60,426 square yards of cotton. [*42] In the textile product mills industry, there is a total of 230,000 workers (187,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $31,649,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $137,604.34 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $169,245.98 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a square foot of carpet, at the cost of $0.75. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 183,472 square feet of carpet, or each production worker has produced 225,661 square feet of carpet. [*43] In the apparel manufacturing industry, there is a total of 520,000 workers (420,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $52,727,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $101,398.07 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $125,540.47 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is T-shirt, at the cost of $5.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 20,279 T-shirts, or each production worker has produced 25,108 T-shirts. [*44] In the leather and allied product manufacturing industry, there is a total of 69,200 workers (55,300 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $8,463,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $122,297.68 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $153,037.97 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is belt, at the cost of $8.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 15,287 belts, or each production worker has produced 19,129 belts. [*45] In the wood product manufacturing industry, there is a total of 586,000 workers (486,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $89,337,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $152,452.21 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $183,820.98 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a plank of wood, at the cost of $5.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 30,490 planks of wood, or each production worker has produced 36,764 planks of wood. [*46] In the paper manufacturing industry, there is a total of 548,000 workers (424,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $159,231,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $290,567.51 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $375,544.81 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is bundle of paper, at the cost of $2.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 145,283 bundles of paper, or each production worker has produced 187,772 bundles of paper. [*47] In the printing and related support activities industry, there is a total of 830,000 workers (598,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $99,916,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $120,380.72 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $167,083.61 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is an ounce of ink, at the cost of $1.50. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 80,253 ounces of ink, or each production worker has produced 111,388 ounces of ink. [*48] In the petroleum and coal products manufacturing industry, there is a total of 101,000 workers (67,100 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $229,153,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $2,268,841.58 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $3,415,096.87 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a gallon of gas, at the cost of $2.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 1,134,420 gallons of gas, or each production worker has produced 1,707,548 gallons of gas. [*49] In the chemical manufacturing industry, there is a total of 890,000 workers (511,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $416,017,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $467,434.83 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $814,123.28 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a pound of Halon 1301 (used for preventing fires), at the cost of $4.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 116,858 pounds of Halon 1301, or each production worker has produced 203,530 pounds of Halon 1301. [*50] In the plastics and rubber products manufacturing industry, there is a total of 1,080,000 workers (857,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $172,904,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $160,096.29 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $201,754.95 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a pound of rubber, at the cost of $0.20. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 800,481 pounds of rubber, or each production worker has produced 1,008,774 pounds of rubber. [*51] In the nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing industry, there is a total of 522,000 workers (407,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $91,593,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $175,465.51 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $225,044.22 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a brick, at the cost of $0.50. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 351,123 bricks, or each production worker has produced 450,088 bricks. [*52] In the primary metal manufacturing industry, there is a total of 578,000 workers (459,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $152,157,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $263,247.40 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $331,496.73 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a pound of steel, at the cost of $0.35. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 752,135 pounds of steel, or each production worker has produced 947,133 pounds of steel. [*53] In the fabricated metal product industry, there is a total of 1,815,000 workers (1,375,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $252,030,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $138,859.50 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $183,294.54 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a horseshoe, at the cost of $2.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 69,429 horseshoes, or each production worker has produced 91,647 horseshoes. [*54] In the machinery manufacturing industry, there is a total of 1,396,000 workers (915,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $269,820,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $193,280.80 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $294,885.24 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is an Engine-Based Farm Plow, at the cost of $19,000. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 10 Engine-Based Farm Plows, or each production worker has produced 15 Engine-Based Farm Plows. [*55] In the computer and electronic product manufacturing industry, there is a total of 1,653,000 workers (853,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $475,025,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $287,371.44 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $556,887.45 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a computer, at the cost of $600. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 479 computers, or each production worker has produced 928 computers. [*56] In the electrical equipment, appliance, and component industry, there is a total of 591,000 workers (431,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $117,278,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $198,439.93 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $272,106.72 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a toaster, at the cost of $10.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 19,843 toasters, or each production worker has produced 27,210 toasters. [*57] In the transportation equipment manufacturing industry, there is a total of 1,838,000 workers (1,352,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $619,631,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $337,122.41 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $458,306.95 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a car, at the cost of $12,000. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 28 cars, or each production worker has produced 38 cars. [*58] In the furniture and related product manufacturing industry, there is a total of 641,000 workers (514,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $70,733,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $110,347.89 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $137,612.84 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a chair, at the cost of $25.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 4,413 chairs, or each production worker has produced 5,504 chairs. [*59] In the miscellaneous manufacturing industry, there is a total of 745,000 workers (501,000 production workers out of those). In the year 2000, they produced $105,899,000,000 worth of shipments. Each worker produced $142,146.30 worth of shipments, or if measuring production workers, then each production worker produced $211,375.24 worth of shipments. A good comparison item is a pound of buttons, at the cost of $10.00. In the year 2000, each worker has produced 14,214 pounds of buttons, or each production worker has produced 21,137 pounds of buttons. [*60] When we examine all of the manufacturing industries of the United States put together, we get a much broader image. In total, in the U.S. manufacturing industry, there are 16,651,200 workers (11,942,900 of them production workers), creating shipments worth a total of: $3,985,342,000,000 (nearly four trillion dollars). Each worker produced $239,342.62 worth of shipments, and each production worker produced $333,699.68 worth of shipments. [*61] The reason why there is a trend for production workers to be responsible for producing more wealth should be obvious. There is a smaller amount of them, still responsible for producing the same amount of wealth. The reason why I separated them into two groups, showing the difference of wealth they produced, is because one is directly responsible for producing, while the others are not directly responsible. The production workers includes such positions as would be typical in the manufacturing business: assembly line workers (each responsible for their specialization in one aspect of the final product), craftsmen who apply physical labor to objects in order to add value to them (such as a carpenter turning a piece of wood into a chair -- though such an example goes back to more primitive technology), and there are other positions of laborers adding wealth to the final product through their labor. Those who do not count as production workers includes an entire different class of laborers: individuals working with management, advertising, human resources department, maybe even a security department. One would reason that to increase profit, income, and productive output, that it would be best to have as many production workers as were necessary to speed up the productive process, and as few managerial or accountant workers as necessary to keep down costs (such as the wages of those individuals). But, this does not happen to always be the case when examining the empirical evidence of the economy. In the computer and electronic product manufacturing industry, there is a total employment of 1,653,000 workers. Of that amount, 853,000 are production employees, and the other 800,000 are non-productive employees. 51.6% of the work force is the actual labor responsible for producing the final product, whereas the other 48.4% are not directly involved production. [*56] Of course, this is not the rule, it is rather an exception -- one I brought up to demonstrate a valid point, that production workers are not always the largest group of employees. However, when examining other industries of the manufacturing sector, one will see that production workers usually outnumber non-production workers, usually at a rate between 2 to 1 and 8 to 1. Section VI: Conclusion In the course of human events and the rise of civilization and modern society, we realize one fact that has been universally recognized by practically all authors, scientists, innovators, and philosophers: technology and tools allow us to be immensely more productive. One man working along side nine other men will be able to produce a great amount more than twenty men working alone. Then we must consider the idea of specialization, of one worker specializing in one part of his craft related to creating a product, and each other worker specializing in another aspect of it. By using this method of specialization, which in itself must be considered a form of technology, workers are capable of producing more than they would without it. With all of this said, I must say that every person should have a certain pride, a certain unrequited honor, in the idea that they are members of a society blessed with the merciful angel of science. As much as some have feared it, and as much as a few rare individuals have loathed it, there is no doubt that it is deserving of praise. With this, I continue to the next chapter, where I explain the basic mechanics of the Capitalist economy. Punkerslut, Sources 1. Barbon, Nicholas, "A Discourse on Trade," 1690, Section: "Of the Value and Price of Wares."
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