From: Dave Frightens Me on
On Wed, 02 Aug 2006 14:48:09 +0200, Mxsmanic <mxsmanic(a)gmail.com>
wrote:

>Padraig Breathnach writes:
>
>> The claim Mixi made is that they are more valuable, not that are more
>> useful to society.
>
>No, I didn't make any such claim. I asked why they are paid more,
>which is not the same thing.

I said "If it's valuable, why aren't you better off?"

You said "Why are professional basketball players paid more than
teachers and doctors?"

In context you could only have meant valuable=paid more, unless you
were playing word games.
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
From: David Horne, _the_ chancellor of the royal duchy of city south and deansgate on
Mxsmanic <mxsmanic(a)gmail.com> wrote:

> Stanislas de Kertanguy writes:
>
> > The words "free" and "market" come to mind.
>
> A free market exists for doctors, teachers, and basketball players
> alike, in the United States.
>
> Why do real-estate agents make so much more than plumbers?

They don't. Next question.

--
David Horne- http://www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk
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From: The Reid on
Following up to A Human Being

>> >> If it's valuable, why aren't you better off?
>> >
>> >Why are professional basketball players paid more than teachers and
>> >doctors?
>>
>> Because they are more valuable.
>
>In what way is their work more useful to society than that of doctors
>and teachers ?

It isn't, but we value them more.
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-photos UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site
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From: The Reid on
Following up to Dave Frightens Me

>There are far fewer professional basketball players that doctors or
>teachers, so they can get much more money.

a *few* people with *rare* talents get a lot of money from sport.
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-photos UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site
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From: Jim Ley on
On Wed, 02 Aug 2006 11:45:29 +0100, Padraig Breathnach
<padraigb(a)MUNGEDiol.ie> wrote:

>"A Human Being" <justahumanbeing1(a)hotmail.com> wrote:
>>In what way is their work more useful to society than that of doctors
>>and teachers ?
>>
>The claim Mixi made is that they are more valuable, not that are more
>useful to society.
>
>If you want to sell sweatshirts or fizzy drinks or trainers or
>chocolate bars or cars or whatever, whose endorsement is more useful
>to you, that of a teacher or that of a basketball player?
>
>Do try to keep up. We are living in a capitalist world where the idea
>of being useful to society is regarded as socialist anathema.

no, it's where beinguseful to society has a monetary value placed on
it, and teachers and doctors have an appropriately small monetary
value, because of the benefits the practioners get - namely the secure
jobs, the "value of society" goodness feeling.

Jim.