@Daojoan @violetmadder @FrenchPanda @storyworker

Rentierism consists of a person who threatens to hurt you, or kill you, if you don’t work for them.

Sometimes it’s quite naked and explicit. Sometimes it’s obfuscated behind elaborate social rituals and fictions. By far the most common of these fictions is the ownership of some asset you need to survive. “Pay me or I will starve you to death.”

That’s it. That’s the distilled essence of rentier ownership. That’s what every rentier relationship consists of. You labor on their behalf, and in return they refrain from hurting you, or killing you. A protection racket. The only thing the rentier owner “provides” you is a promise not to hurt you, at least until the next month’s rent is due.

Most people don’t like that.