Help me out please

[Rosso]

I'm in my final year of high school. For my philosophy class we have a assignment to think of an opinion and defend it in front of the class. The first one was a classmate. A nice fella but his only admiring is for the richest people on this world. His opinion was 'Money makes you happier'... It was the one of the worst presentations I'd ever seen with the most ridiculous statements. Now my turn is next week and I want to show the class what an idiot thought his was. Now I have the knowledge to counter every point (if you may call it points) but I want to definitely crush his statements and at the same moment show everyone the benefits of Socialism/Communism. So can you help me out by putting your arguments why money is the cause of the most of the problems on this world and provide me with some stats that I can use? Thanks comrades.

[Tim Cornelis]

First, you want to realise your classmates don't care, don't about politics, and especially not revolution and communism. Though maybe philosophy class has filtered the most apathetic people. So don't go preaching the socialist word or you'll come off as a Jehova's Witness.
Second, have you heard about how rich people tend to me be asshole-ish? Many 'studies' and studies show this.

[bad ideas actualised by alcohol]

I'd say it is fair to say that money makes you happier, in our current society. It certainely makes me feel better when I don't have to worry about running out of cash. The point is not to say money doesn't make you happy. The point is that in this economic system only a few really have the money. Only a minority of society can really benefit from it. What we want is a system where "happiness" is no longer dependent on wherever you happen to be placed in an unequal system.

[helot]

If i wanted to show them up I'd probably adopt their claim, that money makes you happier, and basing things on utilitarianism conclude that this must mean at the very least economic equality. You're not going to be able to debate people into being communists as it doesn't work like that. Your goal should be to show off your knowledge of philosophy so you can get good grades.

[Alan OldStudent]

I'd avoid turning this into a pissing contest. Here's why:

You can either present your ideas as clearly as possible, or you can attack him and make him look stupid. The thing is, you can't do both.

If you want your ideas to appeal to your classmates, do it on the basis of their merit, and don't even refer to him or what he said. Otherwise, you'll turn it into a personal contest between the two of you, and people will feel uncomfortable and tune you out.

I hear it in your voice that you find his smugness irritating. Let others form their own opinions about that, and you just concentrate on presenting your own ideas as clearly and objectively as possible.

Regards,

Alan OldStudent
The unexamined life is not worth living--Socrates

[Comrade Samuel]

From one highschooler to another: avoid using phrases like 'socialism', 'communism' or any Marxist rhetoric when the audience you are speaking to has little to no understanding of these things. If we ever hope to see the next generation adopt a more progressive worldview then we must learn to prove the validity of our beliefs through our actions, no matter how small scale they may be.

If you'll forgive how pretentious it seems to make a literary reference when there is no call for it, my advice to you is to be Tom Joad: a living embodiment of leftist ideals yet outwardly a person who knows absolutely nothing about politics.

Good luck with the speech, I'm sure you'll think of something. ;)

[#FF0000]

From one highschooler to another: avoid using phrases like 'socialism', 'communism' or any Marxist rhetoric when the audience you are speaking to has little to no understanding of these things. If we ever hope to see the next generation adopt a more progressive worldview then we must learn to prove the validity of our beliefs through our actions, no matter how small scale they may be.

I disagree and always disagree whenever someone suggests trying to be slick and "trick" people into accidentally agreeing with you without being upfront about things by avoiding calling things what they are.

If you're going to defend your politics than be upfront and direct about it. I'm a communist. I'm a marxist. I'm a revolutionary socialist, and here is what this means to me.

[Comrade Samuel]

I disagree and always disagree whenever someone suggests trying to be slick and "trick" people into accidentally agreeing with you without being upfront about things by avoiding calling things what they are.

If you're going to defend your politics than be upfront and direct about it. I'm a communist. I'm a marxist. I'm a revolutionary socialist, and here is what this means to me.


Doesn't that just lead us back to the old question of 'Is it better for people to be leftists or to call themselves leftists?'. To say that I encourage "tricking" people implies that....

What you see above is exactly how far I got before I realized that I completely fucked up. If we cannot lead people towards the correct worldview while remaining consistent with said worldview then perhaps nothing can be done to save our cause- I'm not a defeatist and I have no intentions of derailing this thread any further but some introspection is clearly in order.

[#FF0000]

I think the biggest problem is that most people have never heard a communist/socialist ever speak for themselves (at least in America). I don't expect people to agree with me, but if I'm going to talk about my politics I'm going to be direct. People aren't stupid and can tell when someone's being disingenuous.

[MarxSchmarx]

Here's how I'd respond to it.

Your adversary claims "money makes you happier". Don't say how horrible money is by appealing to suffering and numbers upon dreary numbers. Of course these are what motivate us, but we need to realize that that is the brute force approach that often gets leftists nowhere with scoundrels who don't care about other people, which is practically every teenager who asserts that money makes them happier.

You should ask why. Most likely their answer is something along the lines of "it lets me do just about anything I want, fulfill my aspirations, etc.."

Ask them: "so, the ability to chose your own destiny is what makes money so desirable?"

If they say no, they are a clown and have been exposed for the knave that they are. Ask them if they were imprisoned but had a ton of cash in their jail cell that they could never leave, how they would feel.

If they say yes, now you go in for the sucker punch. "So, my friends, let me tell you about a society in which everyone can choose their own destiny; a society without want; a society without prejudice; a society where each person has the resources to chart their own course; where, from each, according to his abilities etc..."

Now pat yourself on the back for your jujitsu you just performed.