is it really possible to make a person better off without making another person any worse off? economics states pareto optimality as the state where it is not possible to make a person better off without making another person worse off (i think... according to josh anyway -_- and at the rate my econs is going i wouldn't know anyway) and in any case its just a concept, and not really achievable in real life, is it? was just wondering, because seems like in everything we do, the consquences of our actions are not ours alone to bear, and although i don't completely agree, no man is an island. well we live in society, even if there is no need or desire to conform, there has to be some level of assimilation, if not, what's the point? and with assimilation into life in a community, its inevitable that lives are somewhat connected and one's actions will affect another. so can we really do what we want to do, just because we want it, all the time? is it fair to others? but then if we don't do it, are we being fair to ourselves? can there ever be a balance...?
was just considering something... if in the stock market, when someone sells off his shares at a high price and make a lot of money, and another person loses money because they buy those shares and the price drop, does it then apply as well to the real world where some people live in affluence at the expense of the poor? well... seems like there simply can't be equality in this world, what with well to do people enjoying a high standard of living and not giving any thought to the poor in the world. and even if a thought is spared, do our actions reflect our thought? i feel guilty sometimes, succumbing to consumerism and being lucky enough to have my creature comforts while some people in other parts of the world don't even have enough to eat. the thought isn't enough though... and even coupled with actions, one person's actions can't really change the world. not overnight anyway. but by not doing anything, are we complicit in the suffering of the poor? i guess i'm not noble enough to reject society and consumerism as a protest... or perhaps its just a pointless gesture. the world has too many problems for us to fix. or maybe if we stopped being so cruel to it and to one another, it might be a start.
also it seems like sometimes when you get something, like winning money through mere chance, or working really hard to achieve something one wants, there is likely to be the immediate reaction of joy. but by getting something... it could be depriving someone else of something they may really want or need... well some sentiments might be that tough luck right, but still... i guess we should thank our lucky star really. or thank... something or another. we can really work damn bloody hard but not get it still... it could depend on luck and how deserving or suitable one is also right? who knows... i don't. sigh. somehow that didn't come out quite right. forgive me if everything sounds like mere gibberish... tis just chatter.
gosh so sleepy... feel like falling asleep in front of the comp now. the music isn't helping... so melodious. oh yes still have to go have to try decipher the lyrics of the chinese song haha eeps d: before i fall on my face anyhow.
:11:48 PM: :sugah~plum
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