Skip to content
  • Categories
  • Recent
  • Tags
  • Popular
  • World
  • Users
  • Groups
Skins
  • Light
  • Cerulean
  • Cosmo
  • Flatly
  • Journal
  • Litera
  • Lumen
  • Lux
  • Materia
  • Minty
  • Morph
  • Pulse
  • Sandstone
  • Simplex
  • Sketchy
  • Spacelab
  • United
  • Yeti
  • Zephyr
  • Dark
  • Cyborg
  • Darkly
  • Quartz
  • Slate
  • Solar
  • Superhero
  • Vapor

  • Default (No Skin)
  • No Skin
Collapse
Brand Logo

agnos.is Forums

  1. Home
  2. Ask Lemmy
  3. What if we got rid of stocks?

What if we got rid of stocks?

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved Ask Lemmy
asklemmy
114 Posts 54 Posters 1 Views
  • Oldest to Newest
  • Newest to Oldest
  • Most Votes
Reply
  • Reply as topic
Log in to reply
This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
  • nighed@feddit.ukN [email protected]

    Even if we ignored the immediate collapse of the world economy, if you were starting from scratch how would you get anyone to take risks and put money/time into creating a business?

    Even if people did decide to do it, no banks would be able to lend to you (what banks? They need a massive amount of money to start) as they would have absolutely nothing as collateral.

    N This user is from outside of this forum
    N This user is from outside of this forum
    [email protected]
    wrote on last edited by [email protected]
    #20

    How would you get anyone to take risks and start a business

    People create things all the time without a profit motive. Assuming they have a good safety net behind them that allows them to start up there ideas people will create. Case in point the app were on right now, it's developed open source with no profit motive, no stocks, no company. It's built by a bunch of hardline communist who believe in an open social network.

    What banks

    There are credit unions that function as co-ops with no stock ownership

    they would have absolutely nothing as collateral

    Co-ops can have collateral just like any other business, property of a store or factory, stock ( in the product sense ) etc. Yeah we wouldn't have silicon valley with vcs betting millions on unproven tech, but do we really need that?

    Also this is all assuming there's no state involvement or planning. The state has a great credit line that it can use to backstop loans for small cooperative enterprises or just create the enterprises itself, eg. City run grocery stores like zohrans been pitching.

    F nighed@feddit.ukN 2 Replies Last reply
    13
    • B [email protected]

      Ive often seen individuals on the left talking about how billionares shouldnt exist etc., but when probed on how that could be accomplished the answer is usually just taxes or guillotines. I dont think either is great.

      What if instead, corporations were made to be unable to be sold or owned. Initially theyre made to default to popular election for their board, and after that they can set up a charter or adopt a standard one, ratified by majority vote of their employees.

      Bank collapse would probably follow, how could that be remedied? Maybe match the banks invalidated stocks with bonds?

      N This user is from outside of this forum
      N This user is from outside of this forum
      [email protected]
      wrote on last edited by
      #21

      What your describing is a socialist revolution. Marx referred to it as the abolition of private property, which he said is the goal of communism. Private property doesn't mean your phone or car or home or whatever, that is personal property, it's stuff you own to use. Private property is something you own to make money from, stocks, bonds, rental properties etc. That type of property is based off power and exploitation, the power to kick someone out of there home if they don't pay rent, or the exploitation of the working class by extracting there surplus value (profit) which goes to pay a stocks dividends, or to be reinvested in the business thus raising the stocks capital holdings and the stocks value.

      In Marxism private property is the justification given to the working class for there exploitation, and abolishing it will free the working class and allow them to organize horizontally like you said with voting, without bourgeoisie property relations.

      1 Reply Last reply
      2
      • B [email protected]

        Ive often seen individuals on the left talking about how billionares shouldnt exist etc., but when probed on how that could be accomplished the answer is usually just taxes or guillotines. I dont think either is great.

        What if instead, corporations were made to be unable to be sold or owned. Initially theyre made to default to popular election for their board, and after that they can set up a charter or adopt a standard one, ratified by majority vote of their employees.

        Bank collapse would probably follow, how could that be remedied? Maybe match the banks invalidated stocks with bonds?

        F This user is from outside of this forum
        F This user is from outside of this forum
        [email protected]
        wrote on last edited by
        #22

        unable to be sold or owned

        So what incentive is there to start a company? Who funds it? People are expected to start a company, take all the financial risk, for what exactly?

        People being billionaires is not the issue people like to think it is. Public servants becoming millionaires by trading and taking bribes/kickbacks and cushy jobs upon leaving politics is the problem.

        B 1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • O [email protected]

          Investing in the stock market isn’t something exclusive to the rich. For someone like me, it’s pretty much the only realistic way to build any significant wealth for retirement. Without investing, I’d just be losing money to inflation by keeping it in a bank account. Now that I’ve got it invested, I’m already earning enough in returns to cover a few months’ wages each year. It makes no sense to want to take that possibility away from everyone just because you despise billionaires.

          S This user is from outside of this forum
          S This user is from outside of this forum
          [email protected]
          wrote on last edited by
          #23

          I understand and am happy for you that you see a benefit in this for you.

          However, I came to the conclusion that it is trivial for those in power to simply fuck you over on occasion. If you're a small investor and lose, we'll tough luck you signed up for it. If you're the bank, oh dear, we need to rescue it! There are various examples of crashes and closures but it really is fine to have a different opinion.

          I just wanted to state I am not having mine simply for fun and did quite some research and also worked in a critical financial field once where made up money in a global scale was proven.

          As you will also have your background for your opinion. That's fine!

          1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • N [email protected]

            How would you get anyone to take risks and start a business

            People create things all the time without a profit motive. Assuming they have a good safety net behind them that allows them to start up there ideas people will create. Case in point the app were on right now, it's developed open source with no profit motive, no stocks, no company. It's built by a bunch of hardline communist who believe in an open social network.

            What banks

            There are credit unions that function as co-ops with no stock ownership

            they would have absolutely nothing as collateral

            Co-ops can have collateral just like any other business, property of a store or factory, stock ( in the product sense ) etc. Yeah we wouldn't have silicon valley with vcs betting millions on unproven tech, but do we really need that?

            Also this is all assuming there's no state involvement or planning. The state has a great credit line that it can use to backstop loans for small cooperative enterprises or just create the enterprises itself, eg. City run grocery stores like zohrans been pitching.

            F This user is from outside of this forum
            F This user is from outside of this forum
            [email protected]
            wrote on last edited by
            #24

            But why would people take loans out to start businesses if there’s no way to pay the loan back? Where is any profit from the business going?

            Without ownership of a company there’s no reason for anyone to start a company and take on all the risk.

            N B 2 Replies Last reply
            1
            • H [email protected]

              I don't get how you can think Taxes aren't the answer but removing stocks are. Billionaires exist because they have a lot of money in some form and are able to reinvest that money to get more money. If you remove stocks, they will find another way to have a lot of money, whether that's owning a lot of business, buying up properties etc.
              Start applying a sort of wealth tax, disallow financial influence in election (putting actual limits on spending), fix the loophole for passing on wealth to children with little to no tax, etc.
              There really isn't a simple solution, but a wide range of changes that need to be done in my opinion.

              F This user is from outside of this forum
              F This user is from outside of this forum
              [email protected]
              wrote on last edited by
              #25

              People should be allowed to give their money and possessions to their children with NO tax whatsoever.

              C 1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • N [email protected]

                How would you get anyone to take risks and start a business

                People create things all the time without a profit motive. Assuming they have a good safety net behind them that allows them to start up there ideas people will create. Case in point the app were on right now, it's developed open source with no profit motive, no stocks, no company. It's built by a bunch of hardline communist who believe in an open social network.

                What banks

                There are credit unions that function as co-ops with no stock ownership

                they would have absolutely nothing as collateral

                Co-ops can have collateral just like any other business, property of a store or factory, stock ( in the product sense ) etc. Yeah we wouldn't have silicon valley with vcs betting millions on unproven tech, but do we really need that?

                Also this is all assuming there's no state involvement or planning. The state has a great credit line that it can use to backstop loans for small cooperative enterprises or just create the enterprises itself, eg. City run grocery stores like zohrans been pitching.

                nighed@feddit.ukN This user is from outside of this forum
                nighed@feddit.ukN This user is from outside of this forum
                [email protected]
                wrote on last edited by
                #26

                That's fair.

                Didn't think about coops, I assume that if they went completely underwater their creditors would still own them though.

                Could all still work, but could be clunky, would probably all get worked out in time.

                N 1 Reply Last reply
                4
                • B [email protected]

                  Ive often seen individuals on the left talking about how billionares shouldnt exist etc., but when probed on how that could be accomplished the answer is usually just taxes or guillotines. I dont think either is great.

                  What if instead, corporations were made to be unable to be sold or owned. Initially theyre made to default to popular election for their board, and after that they can set up a charter or adopt a standard one, ratified by majority vote of their employees.

                  Bank collapse would probably follow, how could that be remedied? Maybe match the banks invalidated stocks with bonds?

                  A This user is from outside of this forum
                  A This user is from outside of this forum
                  [email protected]
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #27

                  Upvote for blue-sky thinking.

                  1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • spankmonkey@lemmy.worldS [email protected]

                    For example imagine ur in a desert with 1000people and your all dying of thirst and it costs 1000currencies to build a well to get water. But the richest person only has 100currencies. Nobody can afford to build a well and now everyone dies. With stocks that means that everyone can put a couple currencies in and in return get a shair of the water.

                    With ur proposal how in the hell would u build a well? Where do u get the 1000currencies u need to build it?

                    Functioning governments exist to help manage pooled resources.

                    muntedcrocodile@hilariouschaos.comM This user is from outside of this forum
                    muntedcrocodile@hilariouschaos.comM This user is from outside of this forum
                    [email protected]
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #28

                    So the state is responsible for everything sounds a lot like communism. We have seen how effective communism is throughout history I'd much prefer our current system to that.

                    spankmonkey@lemmy.worldS 1 Reply Last reply
                    1
                    • B [email protected]

                      Ive often seen individuals on the left talking about how billionares shouldnt exist etc., but when probed on how that could be accomplished the answer is usually just taxes or guillotines. I dont think either is great.

                      What if instead, corporations were made to be unable to be sold or owned. Initially theyre made to default to popular election for their board, and after that they can set up a charter or adopt a standard one, ratified by majority vote of their employees.

                      Bank collapse would probably follow, how could that be remedied? Maybe match the banks invalidated stocks with bonds?

                      C This user is from outside of this forum
                      C This user is from outside of this forum
                      [email protected]
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #29

                      How about no financial products, period. No loans, no mortgage, only rent-to-own or rent. Obfuscating financial products into more complex combined financial products is half of the economy crashes. Obfuscate the numbers, steal, grab, pillage while no one can understand what the frickel you are doing and BAM: profit on the backs of normies who are tOo dumb to understand what a margin call is or why CDO's are here to violate you. All financial products are a scam waiting in ambush, waiting for another bank-bro to think of a way they can leach from society without giving anything back.

                      appoxo@lemmy.dbzer0.comA 1 Reply Last reply
                      1
                      • F [email protected]

                        People should be allowed to give their money and possessions to their children with NO tax whatsoever.

                        C This user is from outside of this forum
                        C This user is from outside of this forum
                        [email protected]
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #30

                        Power accumulation in families would be through the roof. I get that it feels crude when you can't pass on all your wealth to your children, but it would widen the wealth gap so so much in just a couple generations. Is there another reason you think it should be untaxable?

                        F 1 Reply Last reply
                        2
                        • lime@feddit.nuL [email protected]

                          i think an easier way would be to limit stock trading to once per fiscal quarter.

                          stocks were invented as a way for people to invest in things they believe in, and get some money back as thanks. with the advent of rapid trading, the economy has become hopelessly slaved to the ticker; the business is no longer what makes value, value is what makes value.

                          it's all turned into speculation. eliminating that part would go a long way.

                          D This user is from outside of this forum
                          D This user is from outside of this forum
                          [email protected]
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #31

                          If I’m not mistaken, the US has the beginnings of this in place already in the form of taxes on short-term investments. I’m by no means a tax expert, but this could be a starting point, maybe.

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          3
                          • lime@feddit.nuL [email protected]

                            i think an easier way would be to limit stock trading to once per fiscal quarter.

                            stocks were invented as a way for people to invest in things they believe in, and get some money back as thanks. with the advent of rapid trading, the economy has become hopelessly slaved to the ticker; the business is no longer what makes value, value is what makes value.

                            it's all turned into speculation. eliminating that part would go a long way.

                            bdonvr@thelemmy.clubB This user is from outside of this forum
                            bdonvr@thelemmy.clubB This user is from outside of this forum
                            [email protected]
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #32

                            Yeah make minimum holding periods.

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            4
                            • O [email protected]

                              The stock market isn’t the root of all evil - it’s just one way for companies to raise money and for regular people to invest in those companies. Without it, businesses would still need funding, but the money would come from a much smaller circle of the ultra-rich and private investors. That would make the system less democratic, not more.

                              If we got rid of the stock market, we wouldn't get rid of corporate greed or wealth inequality. We’d just move them into darker, less transparent places - behind closed doors instead of in public view. Ordinary people would lose what little access they have to ownership and wealth-building. Rich people would still get richer, just in ways even harder to regulate.

                              So if the goal is to make the system fairer, abolishing the stock market isn’t the answer. Reforming it might be - but killing it outright would probably just make things worse.

                              D This user is from outside of this forum
                              D This user is from outside of this forum
                              [email protected]
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #33

                              Agreed. Like so many things, I think law enforcement can help rein in the stock market. If there were a way to move the SEC under maybe the Fed(?) and require full funding of the agency as the cost of doing business on any stock market in the US (with similar institutions in other countries). Probably a flawed idea, but I think the goal is sensible: remove the SEC from political ambitions and whims and make the market directly fund its regulatory adherence.

                              Also more people need to suffer severe prison sentences for financial shenanigans. We also need to go back to separate deposit and investment banks.

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • muntedcrocodile@hilariouschaos.comM [email protected]

                                So the state is responsible for everything sounds a lot like communism. We have seen how effective communism is throughout history I'd much prefer our current system to that.

                                spankmonkey@lemmy.worldS This user is from outside of this forum
                                spankmonkey@lemmy.worldS This user is from outside of this forum
                                [email protected]
                                wrote on last edited by [email protected]
                                #34

                                It is literally our current system where we pool taxes to pay for large projects like parks and sidewalks and plazas and public fountains and water utilities.

                                All the capatalist and socialist countries do it.

                                muntedcrocodile@hilariouschaos.comM 1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • C [email protected]

                                  How about no financial products, period. No loans, no mortgage, only rent-to-own or rent. Obfuscating financial products into more complex combined financial products is half of the economy crashes. Obfuscate the numbers, steal, grab, pillage while no one can understand what the frickel you are doing and BAM: profit on the backs of normies who are tOo dumb to understand what a margin call is or why CDO's are here to violate you. All financial products are a scam waiting in ambush, waiting for another bank-bro to think of a way they can leach from society without giving anything back.

                                  appoxo@lemmy.dbzer0.comA This user is from outside of this forum
                                  appoxo@lemmy.dbzer0.comA This user is from outside of this forum
                                  [email protected]
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #35

                                  Let's abolish any money beyond gold coins and exchange trades.
                                  Btw: No writing on a tab as that is a loan.

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • S [email protected]

                                    The stock market shouldn't exist.
                                    Fight me.

                                    jumping_redditor@sh.itjust.worksJ This user is from outside of this forum
                                    jumping_redditor@sh.itjust.worksJ This user is from outside of this forum
                                    [email protected]
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #36

                                    where is the line between croud funding and a stock?

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • mothra@mander.xyzM [email protected]

                                      Had to read twice. My gut reaction was "Getting rid of socks? Why, you monster? Blisters and smelly shoes everywhere!"

                                      W This user is from outside of this forum
                                      W This user is from outside of this forum
                                      [email protected]
                                      wrote on last edited by [email protected]
                                      #37

                                      Just like the kid who asserts that socks are a social construct.

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • B [email protected]

                                        Ive often seen individuals on the left talking about how billionares shouldnt exist etc., but when probed on how that could be accomplished the answer is usually just taxes or guillotines. I dont think either is great.

                                        What if instead, corporations were made to be unable to be sold or owned. Initially theyre made to default to popular election for their board, and after that they can set up a charter or adopt a standard one, ratified by majority vote of their employees.

                                        Bank collapse would probably follow, how could that be remedied? Maybe match the banks invalidated stocks with bonds?

                                        A This user is from outside of this forum
                                        A This user is from outside of this forum
                                        [email protected]
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #38

                                        I read this as "socks" and thought "What the hippy shit is this?"

                                        Then I realized my error but still wondered the same thing.

                                        B 1 Reply Last reply
                                        3
                                        • C [email protected]

                                          Power accumulation in families would be through the roof. I get that it feels crude when you can't pass on all your wealth to your children, but it would widen the wealth gap so so much in just a couple generations. Is there another reason you think it should be untaxable?

                                          F This user is from outside of this forum
                                          F This user is from outside of this forum
                                          [email protected]
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #39

                                          It’s already been taxed.

                                          1 Reply Last reply
                                          0
                                          Reply
                                          • Reply as topic
                                          Log in to reply
                                          • Oldest to Newest
                                          • Newest to Oldest
                                          • Most Votes


                                          • Login

                                          • Login or register to search.
                                          • First post
                                            Last post
                                          0
                                          • Categories
                                          • Recent
                                          • Tags
                                          • Popular
                                          • World
                                          • Users
                                          • Groups