Nothing wrong with this. If I didn’t have to work for money and health insurance, I wouldn’t. Have simply never had any desired to “work” in my entire life.

It is not required to have a capitalistic mindset to understand the inherent value of "work" apart from the reality of scarcity.

You’re painting humans with a pretty broad brush and it’s the kind of thing religions were designed for. Force people into thinking the One True Way that they have to do something to find meaning, when meaning really comes from within.

Why would anybody listen to someone else on this? (the irony is not lost on me here). We get one life and it’s up to everyone to decide for themselves the “right” way to spend it.

I agree that this can be true, but lack of physical work and lack of mental work can also be good for the spirit.

Your spirit isn’t the same as everybody else’s.

> Without the two, a person starts to decay

You might start to decay, but you’re not everybody.

> I think a ton of people who never did a days physical work in their life would benefit greatly if they were put to work,

And I think a ton of people who overvalue a days physical work should be made to sit quietly, do nothing, and chill the heck out.

Your gut reaction is to avoid it but but it makes you feel great physically and mentally, clears away some fog.

Doesn't mean we shouldn't rest our body and our soul.

I do not believe that a physical day’s work is needed for everyone and that most people who believe it’s necessary for themselves believe it because they don’t know and can’t imagine anything else.

The idea that people need to work is just boring and unimaginative to me.

If somebody has never had a physical day's work in their life, they are incompletely developed. "Unimaginative" you say, when there are thousands upon thousands of things you can do within the category physical work.

I'm from a place where there are a huge percentage of the population who have never done a day's work. From childhood to school to universities to office jobs. These people might be successful in measurements of wealth and income, but they also become stunted in many aspects of life. Just as somebody who never learns to write or read.

"They should change because they will likely feel pleasure from it" does not seem like a sufficient reason, there are lots of things people will likely feel pleasure from that I wouldn't say they "should" do.

I don't think work has inherent value apart from the reality of scarcity that can't be fulfilled by things other than work.

Scamming government benefits and failing to contribute to society when you are entirely able is not just selfish, it directly damages society and harms those with legitimate needs as well.

> Why should they? For what reason? If they do nothing productive and meaningful, don't hurt anyone, and don't desire to change, what is the reason they should change?

As long as scarcity is real, the idea that you are owed an existence without work is beyond selfish and entitled, it is directly harmful. They /are/ hurting others.

There are enough empty houses and apartments to house everyone, but there’s a bunch of people in a tent around the corner from my apartment. Food waste is astounding but people still go hungry.

Commies aren’t known for their sensibilities, so I remain unsurprised.

You can go "the wages are too low" all you want, but coming from a dead-end shit town, with minimal life prospects and dropping out of high school to having a GED and training with certifications in a field that pays above the median single-earner income nationally is a pretty good deal. I think Job Corps is a good program, I also think a lot of people who go into Job Corps are doing it as a last-ditch effort but don't actually have any desire to take responsibility for themselves or actually work.

Every single job that Job Corps trains for pays a fair wage in most markets. While it'll likely never make you rich, it is certainly well into the "base level of dignity" territory. Clearly the people I know aren't tempted to commit suicide, they're still investing as much time as they can when they're not wasting their life away playing World of Warcraft to scam government benefits, so.

You aren't treated with dignity by the customers, by your boss, or by the size of your paychecks.

I will say that it's a damn shame that it's not available for someone like a 40-year old who wants to get their life on track.

As you point out, it's also not about the effort. It's also not just the lower class that is effected. It's a problem at all socioeconomic levels. it's just much easier to hide it the more money you make.

It has nothing to do with not wanting to work. It's about not being healthy.

We do not optimize for health in this country. We optimize for profit making. It's not surprising we are massively unhealthy. What is perhaps surprising is that we're so stuck to the idea that profit making is the most important thing to optimize for, instead of individual health.

What makes this surprising to you?

We've forsaken all pretense of moral fiber, we worship entertainment and self-fulfillment at the expense of everything else. And I say "we" in the "What does the general culture edify and promote"—obviously not everyone lives this way. But enough do that it's really unsurprising to me that we worship profits. After all, if I can get mine and live an easy life—why should I care that your life is hard? (I think the answer is that there has to be a higher calling than simply living for yourself, but in our individualistic society good luck pitching that to the masses.)

This resonates with the people I know. The person I'm thinking of that does the most scamming is also massively overweight, sedentary, and spends every waking moment they aren't scamming playing video games. I think they have some sort of serious mental health issues which are untreated, and likely they don't acknowledge or recognize these issues (it's never been a topic of discussion though, so I can't say for sure).

That's part of why I think this is psychosocial, it's absolutely an issue of mental health and physical health issues combining to create a significant proportion of society that is incapable of taking accountability and has no desire to do anything meaningful or beneficial in their life, they're just wasting away like lumps on a log, even when given opportunities.