Звездный десант

           "Nevertheless—wakeup,backthere!neverthelessthedisheveledoldmysticofDasKapital,turgid,tortured,confused,andneurotic,unscientific,illogical,thispompousfraudKarlMarx,neverthelesshadaglimmeringofaveryimportanttruth.Ifhehadpossessedananalyticalmind,hemighthaveformulatedthefirstadequatedefinitionofvalue...andthisplanetmighthavebeensavedendlessgrief.

           "Ormightnot,"headded."You!"

           Ihadsatupwithajerk.

           "Ifyoucan’tlisten,perhapsyoucantelltheclasswhether‘value’isarelative,oranabsolute?"

           Ihadbeenlistening;Ijustdidn’tseeanyreasonnottolistenwitheyesclosedandspinerelaxed.Buthisquestioncaughtmeout;Ihadn’treadthatday’sassignment."Anabsolute,"Ianswered,guessing.

           "Wrong,"hesaidcoldly."‘Value’hasnomeaningotherthaninrelationtolivingbeings.Thevalueofathingisalwaysrelativetoaparticularperson,iscompletelypersonalanddifferentinquantityforeachlivinghuman—‘marketvalue’isafiction,merelyaroughguessattheaverageofpersonalvalues,allofwhichmustbequantitativelydifferentortradewouldbeimpossible."(IhadwonderedwhatFatherwouldhavesaidifhehadheard"marketvalue"calleda"fiction"—snortindisgust,probably.)

           "Thisverypersonalrelationship,‘value,’hastwofactorsforahumanbeing:first,whathecandowithathing,itsusetohim...andsecond,whathemustdotogetit,itscosttohim.Thereisanoldsongwhichassertsthat‘thebestthingsinlifearefree.’