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Comment by SolaceQuantum | Hacker News Reader

Do we? I'm unaware of that, actually. I was under the impression it was widely known that retired people are the sizeable portion of those who volunteer for anything in particular, and there's the existing tropes of retired people getting into art and fitness, and community activities. Book clubs. Crochet/knitting clubs. Bingo. Dancing.

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A sizeable portion, maybe, but certainly not all (and probably not even most). Do you think crocheting, knitting, bingo, and dancing are honestly good things to put people to do? Let alone pay them for?

Exactly. Those are time killing activities to keep from staring out the window and losing your mind. Which is also a big problem for the elderly and unemployed.

Or, we could view them as “happiness activities”. In labor economics it is called leisure and the goal of people is to optimize between income and leisure.

I know lots of employed people who spend their days “staring out the window losing their mind”. It seems we have over optimized in the wrong direction (towards work and away from leisure).

"Happiness activities" are fine, but I'm not sure they should be subsidized by taxes.

They already are subsidized in plenty of places (sports stadiums and public parks for example).

It raises a fundamental question about the government's role and it's goals. We tend focus on maximizing productivity and other countries focus more on maximizing health/happiness. Even the way Americans talk about education is through the lenses of creating more productive workers as opposed to something like creating more enriched citizens.

"Do you think crocheting, knitting, bingo, and dancing are honestly good things to put people to do?"

You also ignored my first and more explained upon example, volunteering. Is there a reason for that?

Volunteering is one possibility. People are just going to replace their jobs with doing free work? If not, what else will they do? According to you, crocheting, knitting, bingo, and dancing.

Volunteering is one possibility. People are just going to replace their jobs with doing free work entirely? If not, what else will they do? According to you, crocheting, knitting, bingo, and dancing.

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