ThirstyFish

Some of my friends who work in the corporate world talk about their worth, their market value. To me, this is baffling or even sad. When I ask them what that really means, many get defensive and some even passive-aggressive. Does it mean that, somehow if your skills are not sufficient to make some corporation money, you are less than a human being? Or, does it mean that the greater the skills you have, the more "human" your are?

In the 21st century, we would expect that commodification of human beings is something of the past. After all, most of us look back at the age of slavery with disgust; We feel convinced that, it was simply not right for people to be bought and sold. And yet, we're doing exactly that under a different name.

How do you treat something you consider to be lacking value or worth? How do corporations treat it? How do states treat it? In whose interest is it for people to endlessly compete for worth? When you do consider yourself to be a commodity, what happens to your self-worth when your skills lag behind, or when you grow old? What really happens when someone in a third world country is willing to your job for one tenth of what you get paid? Should everything be solely considered by its economical value? Take for example, a stay-at-home mom. What is her market value? What is her worth? How about your child. Is your child also a commodity to be exploited by nations and corporations, or maybe just an investment? And, how about love? Is love a commodity too?