Is The Work Ethic Worn Out?
 

Last time I checked, toil was one of god's punishments when Adam and Even got thrown out of Eden. No one has ever depicted heaven as a great and endless time of work.

Part of the point being made, Dis.

faith does not require hard work.

basically it's just the religions trying to control the people.

don't get it twisted, america is definitely a direct result of over the top calvinistic virtues

Shirkers!

I'm nit sure the Americans are especially hardworking.

Spending long hours at the worplace doesn't automatically mean you work hard. Same with being on call 24/7.

Working long hours does not increase productivity at the same rate. Studies have shown that, after 6 or 7 hours at work, productivity drops to such a level that, you'd better go home.

The "bad" thing with this protestants beliefs about working hard, being a good christian and God giving you prosperity, is what it means for poor people.

Originally posted by Urban Ranger
Working long hours does not increase productivity at the same rate.

That's a valid argument against the way we do things, but not an argument against how hard we work. Just cuz our productivity drops doesn't mean we aren't working hard. It just means our hard work becomes increasingly less efficient.

Is it a work ethic if I work hard to manipulate the system and others so I don't have to work? (Though to be honest I don't even have to work hard to do it.)

Why the hell should Americans have a good work ethic when all employees are now interchangible products which recieve no respect or consideration beyond the most basic economic utility?

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
That's a valid argument against the way we do things, but not an argument against how hard we work. How many people here post from work?

And how many of them have shorter working hours?

Originally posted by DanS


Not true. Don't think it's even a majority. True for France and they led the way in shortening the work week IIRC.

I saw a bumper sticker yesterday. I'll toss it out here to fan the fames.

Unions Brought Us the Weekend

After some research, I see this is shortened from the original, Yahweh Gave Us the Sabbath but Unions Brought Us the Weekend.

Originally posted by Dr Strangelove
I question whether the non-Calvinist protestants and Catholics were historically less enthusiastic about the work ethic. According to Pekka Himanen, yes they were. The religion depicted work as a curse instead of a blessing, and there was no religious/ideological incentive to do more than the daily toil.

Besides, wealth was typically frowned upon in catholic countries (to the point that such dirty jobs as usury were left to the Jews and forbidden to Christians), so the accumulation of capital was not a priority either.

http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...milies/lol.gifhttp://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...milies/lol.gifhttp://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...milies/lol.gif http://www.discussworldissues.com/im...ons/icon14.gif

Originally posted by Dr Strangelove
People complain and get downright foul if I don't work 24/7. Are these people going after the Darwin Award?

A tired doctor could be downright lethal!

Originally posted by Spiffor

According to Pekka Himanen, yes they were. The religion depicted work as a curse instead of a blessing, and there was no religious/ideological incentive to do more than the daily toil.

Besides, wealth was typically frowned upon in catholic countries (to the point that such dirty jobs as usury were left to the Jews and forbidden to Christians), so the accumulation of capital was not a priority either. I'm not a Calvinist, yet I don't recall ever being told that work is a curse. Maybe this Pekka Himanen doesn't know what he's talking about. AFAIK the ideology of modern capitalism arose simultaneously in Calvinist Netherlands and non-Calvinist England.

Catholicism (as well as Orthodox Christianity, btw) is a much more conservative doctrine than the Protestant ones. Yet it is most suited to the more traditional/agricultural societies of Southern Europe, where hard work was not an economic need. Farmers did specific hard work during certain periods of time and then sat idling for a big part of the year. Their dividend depended on mother nature and on the prices they got. This means that more work was not always better, neither for the serf, nor for the landowner.

On the other hand, these people were frequently submitted to severe shortages, even famines, whereas during the better days all the surplus was witheld by the landowners. So the serfs should have to be mentally trained to live ascetically and endure, not to demand much. This is why the tradition of lent is observed. If these societies were bred with the protestant work ethic, every famine would bring huge uprisings (not that there weren't any). The farmers might even demand to be duly compensated for their work, regardless of the output of the land, which would be disastrous for the landowning gentry.