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Finland solves housing crisis? Or is well on the way to doing so. It had to abandon Libertarian notions likely. [scoop.me]

ToolGuy 9 Jan 2
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It's pretty obvious when you think about it. Struggling people will be much more likely to succeed and become productive members of society if they have a home. Much better and more cost effective to give these people a hand rather then allow their situation to continue to deteriorate.

With 3D printing technology, simple housing can be produced cheaper and faster than ever before. The solution to the problem is there. We just need to break away from this antiquated mindset that nobody can ever be given anything they didn't earn with their own bloody bare hands and boot straps.

Well said. Too bad there are still so many conservatives who hate the poor, wish them dead, and thus believe they are undeserving of anything except what they earn with their own hands and bootstraps. Better they stay poor or become dead than be morally corrupted by handouts. However, these same people conveniently overlook any moral corruption that occurs when the idle rich such as the Walton family inherit more than they need and grow up to be totally lazy and worthless to society. They are given a pass as being deserving and virtuous.

@TomMcGiverin When society gives a person something it's a handout. When family gives a person something, it's just a helping hand.

@TomMcGiverin It also could be they want to keep some small percentage of the population destitute in order to offer those just above that level a reminder just how good they've got it, making damn near slave wages and barely scraping by.

@bingst Very true. Have to keep the peasants in line, provide cannon fodder for the military, and workers for the worst jobs. Can't allow the peons too many choices for what they do and still keep the system of exploitation going. Won't do at all to allow that...

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I think the UK tried something along the line of providing home ownership for all that wanted a long time back, but I don't think it worked. You are right, Finland's program is totally incompatible with Libertarian thinking in that it supports the ideas that all people have value and deserve to live in dignity, that the government should provide for needs that the private sector fails to meet, and that the whole society is in it together, as evidenced by the use of lottery revenue to fund the housing.

Libertarians, however, would probably argue with the point that housing is cheaper for the state than homelessness because they would say that all the costs of " emergencies" such as accidents, assaults, etc. could easily be eliminated by just turning a blind eye to the homeless and letting them suffer on the streets and then die in the gutter. The only problem is that occaisionally one of those homeless might assault or kill some proper person like the Libertarian or their loved one, in which their viewpoint of neglect would suddenly get turned on its head and they would demand the death penalty for the homeless killer. In other words," I don't care about anyone outside my circle until something affects me....."

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