I wouldn't be so rash as to confuse monetary/property wealth with some dubious moral virtue called "agency". They say Putin is worth around 200 billion, and yet he's your basic sleazeball. If anything people who accumulate such enormous wealth and possessions simply know how to work the capitalist system for their favor. Like a master video game player or chess player. There's nothing really superior or willpowerish about it. It's just a matter of how much energy and time you want to invest in being really good at something.. Like an Olympic athlete or a classical pianist. The real question is this though-- at what price? For example, wealthy tycoons like Musk and Trump strike me as immature and socially-stunted and narcissistic. Like little kids playing with toys. Without their surrounding entourage of more mature and wiser hired people to do things for them and advise them, they'd be like fish out of water. Howard Hughes may be a teachable example of this infantilizing life course: the myth of the self-made man.
It seems I have misunderstood the intent of the thread. I was going with "What you want to achieve" .. once that is established the 'how' is a secondary consideration. Z's story about the man who invented a thing .. he didn't lose his job or his house or his wife because of it .. seems okay to me. A small 'thank-you' might have been nice but that's just how cookies crumble.
(Dec 27, 2025 11:35 PM)stryder Wrote: [ -> ]Every car companies sales montage is about buying a car to complement your manhood while selling the ability to drive as "freedom".
That unfortunately is counter-intuitive to self-drive cars as they drive themselves, the companies programming decides on how and where you can drive and even then there is subsequent other points (such a the raw consumption of resources for building and fueling vehicles, which increases with cost every time one made let alone sold.)
It's part of the reason why moving towards fleet systems (taxis, buses etc.) Although it seems socialist, it makes the most sense to keep costs down for everyone (and companies can make a better margin, grow and diversify).
The problem at that point however is getting people onboard with it since it's a centuries worth of marketing manipulating people to be materialist, it means a complete ideological curve ball to most of them.
Unlike in the UK, in most of the US, owning a car is a necessity. A public fleet system could never work here. Remember, you live on a tiny island.
(Dec 28, 2025 12:17 AM)Magical Realist Wrote: [ -> ]I wouldn't be so rash as to confuse monetary/property wealth with some dubious moral virtue called "agency".
I don't think anyone did, but often some degree of wealth correlates to the highly motivated and effective.
Can agency mean larceny? Designs and inventions have a history of being stolen. Musk has been accused of it several times. If you’re going to steal an idea then you can probably do it easily with big money backing you up.
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/13-wor...y5qLrsbc_c
Do successful criminals have agency? Did they not fight their way to the top, overcome obstacles, etc?1
Agency is the ability to make choices and enact them. So yes, if your goal is to accomplish crime, that would be the use of your agency.
And criminals certainly have agency in the moral sense of being held accountable for their crimes.
Most 'agency' comes from getting other people to do what you want them to do aka using people. Perhaps what should be taught in school is 'how to use people' - perhaps with some discussion of moral limits (if any).
AI’s take on wealth making agency easier. *
Quote: AI Overview
Yes, being rich makes agency easier by providing significant advantages in risk tolerance, access to resources, and operational flexibility. While wealth does not inherently guarantee success or quality, it reduces the immediate pressures that often cause startups to fail.
Key Reasons Wealth Facilitates Agency:
Risk Tolerance: Wealthy individuals possess a higher tolerance for risk, allowing them to invest more in business endeavors. A one-standard-deviation increase in risk tolerance can result in a 2.7 percentage point rise in business investment for wealthy individuals, compared to 1.2 for non-wealthy individuals.
Faster Operations: Money enables faster hiring, better tools, and the ability to test strategies quickly without immediate fear of bankruptcy.
Initial Capital: It eliminates the immediate need to secure funding, allowing for a focus on strategy rather than survival.
Access to Networks: Being wealthy often provides access to a "hidden job market" or network of high-value connections through word-of-mouth and referrals.
*AI has been known to make mistakes. Argue with machine if you wish, not me.
