internet_profiteering

Internet Profiteering

Introduction

This was written by Bernard Shaw in 1928 in his book The Intelligence Womans Guide to Socialism, Capitalism, Sovietisn and Facsism, page 127

The Quote

“There is one more trick that can be played on you both by the municipality and the Government. In spite of their obligation not to profiteer, but to give you every service at cost price, they often do profiteer quite openly, and actually boast of their profits as a proof of their business efficiency. This takes place when you pay for the service, not by a tax or a rate, but by the ordinary process of paying for what you consume. Thus when you want a letter sent, you pay the Government three halfpence across the counter for the job. When you live where electric light is made and supplied by the municipality, you do not pay for it in your rates: you pay so much for every unit you consume. I am sorry to have to add that the Postmaster-General takes advantage of this to charge you more for carrying your letter than the average cost of it to the Post Office. In this way he makes a profit which he hands over to the Chancellor ofthe Exchequer, who uses it to keep down the income tax and supertax. You pay more that the income tax payers may pay less. A fraction of your three halfpence goes into the pockets ofthe millionaires. True, ifyou are an income tax payer you get a scrap ofit back yourself; but as most people do not pay income tax and everybody buys at least a few postage stamps, the income tax payers in effect exploit the purchasers of stamps. The principle is wrong, and the practice a dangerous abuse, which is nevertheless applauded and carried to greater and greater lengths as the Government adds telegraphs to posts, telephones to telegraphs, and wireless to both.”

My Comments

When Shaw wrote this the Telegraphs in the UK were fully Government owned as was parts of wireless (Radio). As he explains it that still means that it provides a profit for the rich.

In Shaws days the internet did not exist. But based on the way he describes the working of the postal system,even if the internet was owned by the Government, the rich would still profit from it.

I'm still not finished reading his book, so as of yet Im not full sure of his solution to the problem other that everyone receiving the same income

If you want to read the book a free PDF version can be downloaded from here

internet_profiteering.txt · Last modified: 2022/05/20 10:09 by geoff