Just like a pro skateboarder should get paid for doing something they’re good at. What’s weird though is that what if you’re good at something that doesn’t create an exchange at all? I guess the overarching point is IF you really want to get paid, it’s possible to do so doing anything. Just sucks for people who are good at something but have no idea how to get paid. Lime most artists, writers, athletes, etc.

@Ez – I’d like to see a world where writers didn’t have to earn a living from their books rather than one where, for the large majority, it was near impossible to earn a living from one’s books. That said, I do believe in the idea of reward — though I think of it more as an exchange rather than a reward.

Just as a widget maker works hard to create a widget and then bring it to market, and wants to see some reward for the enormous amount of work and time expended for the effort.

Money can be a loaded topic, but within the system we have, as a symbolic measure of work or goods, it’s the best thing we’ve got.

I think it’s philosophically important for a society to pay for art — and by doing so, to indicate that they value the art. I’m not sure it’s necessarily philosophicaly important for an artist to be paid, but it is pragmatically important.

But now that you mention it, I’ll try to get my friend the Kindle addict to buy himself a copy.