if that's true, then the animals are in charge. you'll be miserable for the honor of being enslaved by beast?
the GP hit the nail on the head saying,
> If you start looking at the law in terms of "how much does it cost to do whatever I want", then you are now effectively playing by the same rules as those who seek to control your life.
But understanding that doesn't give you any power back. Knowing that you can just pay large fines to do illegal business things doesn't help someone who isn't running a business or can afford to pay those large fines
I somewhat disagree. It doesn't give you resources, but it does give you a degree of freedom in your thinking and problem-solving.
There is also the fact that many things you could be fined for aren't worth it if you're small enough not to be a threat. Most of those threats come from other companies holding you to the flame, not from public institutions.
Follow the rules enforced by public institutions, but take risks when it's not worth it for private institutions to complain.
That said, if you don't have money for multiple years of expenses, it doesn't help you much directly.
nope, you're still in grave danger if you're not wealthy. but it does give the insight that we don't have to play by their rules when we realize most of those rules only exist to make it harder for us to play.
"Not playing by the rules" can't help you if not playing by the rules requires resources. That's the WHOLE POINT of the system as designed. You as an individual cannot do anything outside the system even if you know it's rigged unless you already had the resources required to play outside the system.
It allows you to maybe optimize for a different state within the system, but that state will still be one that you are "allowed" to optimize for.
Knowing the casino is rigged does not give you the ability to beat the house. It only allows you to better decide to go home, but in reality there's no equivalent to "going home".
yes, I'm happily making that choice. it is the only sane choice.
if you really think the kingdom can be neatly divided into wolverines, nuthatches, and happy people on one side, and "honorable" people on the other side, you do you. aren't you amazed that an animal like me can argue with you though?
Choosing honor over animalism has nothing to do with intelligence nor education.
Like I said, each of us gets to make that choice.
An observation - many people brag about things like cheating in school "because everybody does it", or other excuses. When other people hear these, they smile and nod and move them to the "do not trust" list in their heads. The cheaters unwittingly miss out on a lot of opportunities that way.
The real power is in writing the laws. Legal business isn't very profitable because everyone is doing it, but illegal business can be quite dangerous. This problem goes away if you can write laws to stifle your competitors, while keeping all the freedom to yourself. Example: the insider trading laws.
the GP hit the nail on the head saying,
> If you start looking at the law in terms of "how much does it cost to do whatever I want", then you are now effectively playing by the same rules as those who seek to control your life.
laws are for the powerless.