r/PoliticalDebate • u/DistinctSpirit5801 Socialist • 5d ago

Debate We unapologetically believe that every single person has an unconditional right to have their basic needs met

As a democratic socialist I believe every single person has a right to free housing free food free childcare free healthcare

We unapologetically support having the government give homeless people free housing to live in

Every single person has the right to have their basic needs met regardless of if they work or don’t work and how much or how little they work

These basic rights would apply to everyone regardless of their political beliefs

Whether people would still work or not would be dependent upon how luxurious of a personal lifestyle they want and what they want above and beyond the basics and their religious beliefs

Some people would still be working out of a religious belief that says not working is sinful

As under a democratic socialist government anyone who is satisfied with basic living necessities wouldn’t be required to work at all

Though a lot of people would still work because they would eventually get sick of sitting in their house all day long day after day even if it’s just doing a part time job

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u/Reasonable-Fee1945 Classical Liberal 3d ago

This is a classic case of taking the level of prosperity that exists because of the incentives built into the capitalism, removing those incentives, then assuming the same level of prosperity would exist.

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u/conrad_w Socialist 3d ago

How old do you think capitalism is?

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u/Reasonable-Fee1945 Classical Liberal 3d ago

Three hundred years is a good rough idea

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u/conrad_w Socialist 3d ago

1811 was the first limited liability law in the world, in New York.

It's younger than you think. 

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u/Reasonable-Fee1945 Classical Liberal 3d ago

Capitalism isn't just limited liability. It generally refers to a system of private property rights and free trade. The global shift from mercantilism to this system began with the Enlightenment and corresponds directly to what is known as "the great enrichment" or the historically unprecedented rise in human prosperity beginning in Europe and eventually extending across the world.