> We need to stop talking about "job creation" and start talking about "wealth creation".
It's more than wealth creation, though. People must also be paid fairly for the wealth created. Wealth creation is happening, the problem is that the rewards for it are all being skimmed away and those in the middle are being squeezed-- squeezed out of their homes, out of their cars, and out of their educations.
The housing boom of the last decade resulted in a great deal of wealth creation. That wasn't the problem. The problem is who ultimately winds up owning that wealth and how much it's worth on the market.
It's true you can't just wave your magic jobs wand and "create jobs," it's true that people gloss over the need to create wealth and eventually be profitable. That doesn't mean improving the number and quality of jobs (or work) available isn't an important focus.
>>> Wealth creation is happening, the problem is that the rewards for it are all being skimmed away and those in the middle are being squeezed
Those whose compensation is unfair usually run for another employer (that another employer sometimes being themselves). Money is simply a proxy for the value of the goods/services they produce for the society.
> Those whose compensation is unfair usually run for another employer
This doesn't happen efficiently, however. Moving upwards is risky and the consequences of a downward-adjustment (getting layed off) often include bankruptcy and financial ruin.
<devil's advocate>
Drug dealers/producers produce products that provide the user with exotic and novel experiences and which may increase the user's sociability. Similar to the travel industry and a personal life coach in a small form factor, drugs are good/service that many people seem to want.
</devil's advocate>
If you believe that drugs add value to people's life, then you've chosen the world you want to live in. I chose to believe that (addictive) drugs are really a tax levied on people with weaknesses to be exploited (we all have weaknesses that can be exploited). The purchase of addictive drugs doesn't create value but redistributes wealth from the folks that are weak to the exploiters of that weakness. I don't value drug wealth. That's the world I choose to live in.
The housing boom created no wealth. None at all. When house prices go up nothing is created, houses dont get better or more numerous (building does that). Wealth is redistributed but not created.
It's more than wealth creation, though. People must also be paid fairly for the wealth created. Wealth creation is happening, the problem is that the rewards for it are all being skimmed away and those in the middle are being squeezed-- squeezed out of their homes, out of their cars, and out of their educations.
The housing boom of the last decade resulted in a great deal of wealth creation. That wasn't the problem. The problem is who ultimately winds up owning that wealth and how much it's worth on the market.
It's true you can't just wave your magic jobs wand and "create jobs," it's true that people gloss over the need to create wealth and eventually be profitable. That doesn't mean improving the number and quality of jobs (or work) available isn't an important focus.