Reflections on Labor Day: The Truth of Production Logic and Financial Freedom

Tomorrow is International Labor Day. This international holiday commemorates the large-scale strike by Chicago workers on May 1, 1886, to demand an 8-hour workday.

Every time this season comes around, there are always some opinion leaders with extreme economic views advocating for the abolition of labor law protection, promoting a completely market-oriented free hiring system.

It is worth noting that economic theories are never value-neutral. Every economist and opinion leader has their own stance and biases. Even if they try to disguise it, as soon as they speak, their positions will inadvertently be revealed.

Those extreme market-oriented economic opinion leaders generally lean towards business owners and capital holders. This reminds one of the classic description by the literary master: "A running dog, though nourished by a capitalist, actually belongs to all capitalists, so it behaves docilely towards all wealthy people and barks wildly at all poor people. It does not know who its master is, which is precisely the reason it behaves docilely towards all wealthy people, and is evidence that it belongs to all capitalists. Even if no one nourishes it, starving and lean, it becomes a wild dog, yet still behaves docilely towards all wealthy people and barks wildly at all poor people; however, at this point, it becomes even less clear about who its master is."

The logic that these people claim labor protection systems will lead to trade conflicts or even wars is completely untenable. History has proven that it is precisely excessive overtime and overproduction that have prompted capital holders to continuously seek overseas markets, ultimately leading to the global colonial wars of the 17th to 19th centuries.

Human production activities can be divided into three stages:

Stage One: Self-sufficient production. Meet basic needs, just eat and dress warmly, without competing with others.

Phase Two: Demand-Oriented Production. With the recognition of professional skills, expand production scale to meet the needs of more people until the market is saturated.

Stage Three: Profit-driven production. There is no longer concern about whether the product truly meets demand; production will continue and scale will expand as long as it generates profit. When the market becomes saturated, various means will be employed to open up the market, including lobbying legislation, suppressing competitors, and funding favorable research.

There are three obvious conclusions here:

1. Profit-driven production inevitably leads to overproduction and oversupply regardless of real demand.

Second, the financial credit system will accelerate the formation of this surplus.

Thirdly, it is the overproduction in the third stage that is the root cause of trade conflicts, wars, and imperialist expansion.

The third stage is a typical "capitalist mode of production."

In this production model, capital holders resemble hot-seeking speculators, flocking to wherever there are exorbitant profits.

The final result is akin to the rampant issuance in the digital asset space, resulting in oversupply, with most projects ultimately going to zero.

Those who have held Bitcoin will have a deeper understanding: truly valuable things are often strictly limited, and scarcity creates value.

Blindly expanding production is like speculating on trends; on the surface, it seems to pursue rapid wealth, but in essence, it dilutes value.

The behavior of capitalists producing for profit is essentially no different from speculative behavior.

Both are zero-sum games. The negative-sum competition of the capitalist mode of production is referred to in economics as overproduction, which means producing goods that cannot be sold, ultimately resulting in losses.

What is the key difference in the mode of production when it shifts from the second stage to the third stage?

It is a fundamental shift from "for the people" to "for the money."

In the second stage and before, production is still people-oriented.

Starting from the third stage, production shifts to being money-based.

This is exactly the embodiment of that famous philosophical question: Is a person an end in themselves or a means to an end?

The clear answer given by the capitalist mode of production is: people are a means to achieve profit.

Thus, money has transformed from a tool that satisfies human needs into the ruler of man.

People have become tools for the appreciation of money, turning into a modern form of servitude.

The situation of modern workers is even worse than that of actual draft animals. After all, draft animals do not have to pay for their own food and housing, while workers have to cover their living expenses, rent, mortgages, and also spend on entertainment, constantly improving themselves, working overtime, just to create more profits for their employers.

The greatest concern of capital holders is that laborers refuse to participate in this system. Once everyone adopts a laid-back attitude, no one will create profits for them.

Therefore, the financial freedom of workers poses a threat to the capitalist system.

If everyone is financially free, who would still play the role of labor?

Therefore, the financial freedom concept that promotes the idea that ordinary people can live off investments like capitalists without working often turns out to be an intellectual tax and a harvesting trap.

The methods to teach you how to get rich usually do not aim to help you get rich, but rather to make the person teaching you rich.

This is where the truth lies.

A reasonable financial freedom model may be to work hard for ten years in exchange for lifelong freedom.

If productivity continues to improve, perhaps just one year of labor could exchange for lifelong freedom?

So, under the current historical conditions, how can ordinary people break through the predicament?

The answer lies in seeing through the entire game rules.

The world is a closed loop.

The value exploited by capitalists, you can reclaim from the other end.

I analyze the logic of capitalists and capitalist production tirelessly, with the purpose of reminding everyone to view problems from a higher level and dimension.

Since capitalists calculate every mechanism, in the end, they are merely blind speculators chasing trends. Therefore, smart people should understand how to reap profits in the face of a speculative army engaged in zero-sum competition.

Is it about competing in it?

If you indeed have a competitive advantage, that's fine. You must accept the outcome of the bet.

Or you are the rule maker of the game, then you enter the market as a harvester.

But what if you are just an ordinary person?

My answer is to take advantage of the natural weaknesses of overproduction, excessive issuance, and the frenzied expansion of capital, holding the relatively rarest assets:

Bitcoin.

Therefore, I summarize it in one sentence: all surplus value will ultimately belong to Bitcoin.

Reserve your digital gold and relax during the holidays.