[stinkypete]

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Stinkypete - define what you mean by "contribute". Define what you mean by "society". Without those definitions, you are arguing disingenously.

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society is the people of the world as a whole.

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Also, let me counter your splitting of hairs about the government with this analogy: For the sake of argument, let's say Barry G. can be considered as a pro poker player who contributes to society because he donates his money earned through poker endeavors to charitable causes. Now, let's say some organization that he's donated money to actually turns out to be a scam operation that has been using Barry G's donations to buy hookers and Porsches instead of feeding orphans. Does that mean then that Barry G is no longer contributing to society because his money is not being spent on a self-less cause (although that clearly was not his intent)?

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barry g's contribution is spreading wealth. there isn't really added value. it's possible, maybe even likely, that he spreads the money out more efficiently and society benefits as a whole, but that's a more complicated discussion than i'm going to get into.

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Your argument against the government is illogical because it completely ignores the intent of the taxpayers. Most taxpayers pay taxes in good faith in the hope that the government will fix roads with it, develop social programs, etc. Whether or not the government actually does those things is (in most instances) beyond the control of most individuals. You cannot negate their good intent simply because the intended result does not always occur.


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good intent is not equal to productivity. paying taxes is hardly acting in good faith. it's simply abiding by the law.

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I think poker contributes to society as much as anything else can. Example: I want to win money at poker. Winning money at poker requires patience. In order for me to win money at poker, I must learn to be patient. By learning how to be patient, I stop yelling at the delivery man when my pizza is late, I stop complaining when it takes 30 minutes to cash a check at the bank because the teller is slow, I no longer have road rage during rush hour. By not increasing the level of stress and anxiety of other people by yelling, complaining, having road rage, I contribute to society.

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or you could make the same contribution by simply not existing. that has the added benefit that you wouldn't be consuming any valuable resources.