[AleoMagus]

Oh, I know that Lou is not really advocating social darwinism here. If anything, I am trying to point out that though we can make those kinds of arguments - some of them are really wrong. Come to think of it, the Fascist example you give is even better.

Though we can try to adopt a completely subjective outlook where "anyone can justify or condemn a profession based upon their own rationale, so I'll just do what I want" there still has to be a point where we ask ourselves, how much merit is there in MY particular rationale?

The simple fact is, some people do contribute more to society and those people should be admired, praised, and emulated. Does that make a career in poker wrong? Well... No. But it sure doesn't make it right either. If you can have that kind of life but also give back, that's another thing. We are, after all, defined by a lot more than just what we do to pay the bills.

As for the car crash analogy, it may not represent the way a social darwinist thinks, but it is fitting. After all, evolutionary changes or patterns are measured over eons. To think that a single car crash is an isolated example of bad luck, while being born into poverty is somehow long-term is misleading at best.

Regards,
Brad S