A carpenter does not fix a leaky toilet, nor does a plumber decide if a kitchen needs a new floor.
Someone is responsible for ensuring that the right job is performed by the right expert at the right time and is the one ultimately responsible for its success. This is the person you call and yell at if the job is poorly done. It's also the person you pay when it's done correctly. He is the landlord.
Workers don't spontaneously come together to erect and maintain buildings, they need a driving force behind them that swallows the risks on top of having the skills required to organise, synchronise and negotiate with many specialists covering many different fields and trades.
>Workers don't spontaneously come together to erect and maintain buildings
Of course we do! We've done it throughout human history.
Civilization did not start with a landlord demanding the construction of a house.
The mere existence of open source software negates your entire argument here. Not only does it exist, but it ultimately underpins all the technology we enjoy today (and what rent-seekers enjoy appropriating for profit)
Another kind of rent seeker would be a dude building a small SAAS product by stitching together other people framework, paying a copywriter for his blog content and a designer for his visual. Another is a dude investing his money in bonds/stocks hoping for a return.
There are many kind of rent seeker in this world. Each requiring a different set of skills, expertise and appetite for risks. Someone doing that through real estate is called a landlord. It's not better or worse than any other kind.
> Another kind of rent seeker would be a dude building a small SAAS product by stitching together other people framework, paying a copywriter for his blog content and a designer for his visual. Another is a dude investing his money in bonds/stocks hoping for a return.
Yes, we are in agreement.
> There are many kind of rent seeker in this world. Each requiring a different set of skills, expertise and appetite for risks. Someone doing that through real estate is called a landlord. It's not better or worse than any other kind.
Let's not put makeup on this particular pig. I am a rent-seeker myself. Just not a hypocrite that will pretend that I have a particular set of skills that contribute anything to the world.
I just saved money acquired through labor and bought dividend stocks.
A carpenter does not fix a leaky toilet, nor does a plumber decide if a kitchen needs a new floor.
Someone is responsible for ensuring that the right job is performed by the right expert at the right time and is the one ultimately responsible for its success. This is the person you call and yell at if the job is poorly done. It's also the person you pay when it's done correctly. He is the landlord.
Workers don't spontaneously come together to erect and maintain buildings, they need a driving force behind them that swallows the risks on top of having the skills required to organise, synchronise and negotiate with many specialists covering many different fields and trades.