THE CHARACTER OF THE PROBLEM 5

This is the elementary fact which in a demo-cracy the man in the street must learn to under-stand if the nation is to act wisely—that the sizeof the civilian's cake is fixed.

What follows from this?

It means, broadly speaking, that the public asa whole cannot increase its consumption byincreasing its money earnings. Yet most of ustry to increase our earnings in the belief thatwe can thus increase our consumption,—which isusually true. Indeed in a sense it is true still.For each individual can increase his share ofconsumption if he has more money to spend.But, since the size of the cake is now fixed andno longer expansible, he can only do so at theexpense of other people.

Thus, what is to the advantage of each of usregarded as a solitary individual is to the dis-advantage of each of us regarded as members ofa community. If all alike spend more, no onebenefits. Here is the ideal opportunity for acommon plan and for imposing a rule whicheveryone must observe. By such a plan, as Ihope to show, the wage and salary earner canconsume as much as before and in addition havemoney over in the bank for his future benefitand security, which would belong otherwise tothe capitalist class.

Without such a plan we shall consume no morethan otherwise, but will have spent all our moneyand have nothing over. For prices will rise justenough for the money we spend to be used upby the increased cost of what there is to buy.