Who Creates the Value of Labor?

Mickey  Kaus, writing on the  intransigence  of UAW president Ron  Gettlefinger [h/t Instapundit], observes:

It doesn’t mean Gettlefinger’s workers have a right to $28/hour  if at that wage their employers can’t stay in business without an ongoing multi-billion dollar subsidy. I’m sorry if this seems obvious. It’s apparently not obvious enough.

It’s not obvious to most on the Left. One of the basic tenets of Marxism is that labor has intrinsic value that  precedes  and is  separate  from the value of  management  and investing. Most leftists, even those who are not Marxist, have absorbed this concept of the value of labor.  

In reality, the circumstances are the exact opposite. It is the skill and judgment  of managers and investors that creates the value of labor. If you don’t own your own company or freelance, you rely on someone else to choose what work you do and how you do it. Their  decisions  create the value of the products and services you make.    When they make mistakes, the value of your labor decreases and you should charge less for it.  

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The Selfish Left

In the NYTimes,  Nicholas Kristof asks why leftists give less to charity  [h/t Instapundit] than do those on the Right. Why do the people who collectively advocate redistributing wealth from producers to the poor donate so little as individuals to the same cause?

I think the reason simple: Leftism isn’t about  compassion. Leftism is about control. Leftism is about freeing the individual from personal responsibility for anything, including charity.

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Two Worthwhile Interviews

Peter Robinson interviews Thomas Sowell and Shelby Steele. Sowell talks about his book, A Conflict of Visions, current affairs and the presidential election in a discussion that took place before the election. Steele talks about Barack Obama, US racial politics and the presidential election in the context of his book, A Bound Man. The video version of each interview is roughly one-half hour long and is accompanied by a written transcript. Click the “Read the rest…” link below to watch the videos or read the transcripts.

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