“By Rational Ambition”
Yoritomo continues his defense of ambition in this lesson. Not all ambition – rational ambition.
“Ambition, when it excludes unworthy means and spurns intrigue, is it not one of the noblest passions that could be conceived?”
He talks about how we should talk to our children about ambition –
“It is a crime to destroy in the breasts of children, under the pretense of modesty, that self-confidence which would shine like a star in the hearts of all.”
He says that it is better to encourage ambition. We need people who will go for it and take chances. They are the “handmaid of destiny” as they will make the progress and discoveries that will make our lives easier.
He says that we should reward the ambitious so they have an incentive to continue to do the work and take the risks that few will to make life better for all.
I find the subject he tackles next to be fascinating because he wrote it in 1186 A.D. It has to do with questioning the morality for some to get rich, or more rather, jealousy fo the rich. Amazing that this idea was around back then such that he addressed it then. I guess jealousy was put in us as a useful emotion for survival in the environment and conditions when we were created, and it persists today.
Yoritomo says that yes, some rich people will be “hard-hearted” and not charitable, but that they are still of use to others as their work has benefitted others, and the capital they have collected and the money they spend is of benefit to other men (creating jobs, enabling projects). Of course, not all rich people are “hard-hearted”, and it would seem the public sometimes loves to point the finger at a successful person to confirm their jealousy and bias, and stereotype all ambitious and successful people. The news of good deeds does not spread as widely.
We need to preserve the incentive for the ambitious.
Today, Yoritomo’s message would come in strong defense of capitalism and against socialism and communism, the latter which seeks to make everyone equal by taking from those that have it and giving to those who do not. This removes the incentive for the ambitious, and soon they stop trying or go somewhere else.
(There is certainly much redistribution going on even in capitalist countries, and a limit that disincentivizes the exercising of rational ambition. I think we are getting closer. Let us not find it.)
More tomorrow!
I pray we don’t find the limit. A small example from the real estate world (my business) is loan level price adjustments (fancy term for points charged to borrowers by Fannie Mae). These “adjustments” charge those putting down 20% far more than they charge those who put down 5%. This means those with the means to put down a substantial amount are subsidizing those who do not or will not. Most consider it just another fee and don’t recognize what it is — taking from those who have prudently saved in order to pay for those who have not.
Larry you might find this interesting: Phil Gramm presentation (starting at about 11 minutes). https://manhattan.institute/event/2024-hayek-lecture regarding the myth of income inequality in the USA.
Linda is Fortastic!
God bless the ambitious people of the world. We need more of them.