社会税

人类是社会动物，这也是人类社会可以蓬勃发展的重要原因之一。或直接，或间接，人们相互协同，但，这种协同总体上提高了整个社会的效率、也降低了成本，与此同时还多多少少保障了安全。

然而，社会并不完美，永远不可能完美。局部来看，有时候效率会被削减，比如官僚主义的普遍存在，不仅降低社会效率，还会给个体增加很多完全不必要的成本；再比如，战争的爆发，会使个体生活从基本安全转变为极度危险。

对个体来说，这就是融入社会的代价，或者可以称之为成本。

协作的前提是参与其中的每个个都体守规矩。但，这并不可能。社会协作一旦启动，那些不守规矩的人会想尽一切办法占便宜，相对来看，守规矩的人就会因此吃亏。守不守规矩都是一样的，都需要社会协作，都无法彻底脱离社会，所以，每个个体脱离社会的成本是一样的，但，从每时每刻的时间切片上来看，不守规矩的收益总是更高。

于是，从各种局部的细索规矩开始，终于演化出社会统一的法制…… 不过，从成本角度来看，法律系统本身，就是守规矩者被迫付出的代价。如果每个个体都守规矩，都不占便宜，那么整个社会的效率更高，运作成本更低，也相对更为安全，但，这并不可能。于是，守规矩者必须负担这个成本来保护自己…… 长期来看，这也的确有效，有效的原因倒也简单清楚，毕竟，愿意守规矩的人占比更高，甚至是绝大多数。

生活中，让个体随时觉得无奈的例子比比皆是。比如，因为有恐怖分子存在，绝大多数人只好忍受繁琐的安检；再比如，因为有太多的巨婴存在，原本用来保证所有人安全的有限警力大部分都被他们的幼稚行为导致的混乱所占据……

从另外一个角度望过去，更令人无奈的不是 “大部分人被一小部分人拖累”，而是 “一小部分人被绝大部分人拖累”。在教育领域这种现象尤为明显。大部分人对教育一无所知，与此同时，所有人都认同教育的重要性…… 这造就了另外一个想象不到的困境，社会上流行的教育方法几乎总是错的，漏洞百出。于是，那些坚持正确教育方法的家长会面临很多无处诉说的困境，无人理解，甚至有可能遭受打压…… 无解的困境在于，自己也好，孩子也罢，都无法彻底脱离社会。于是，只能忍受，这也是社会生活必须承受的代价，或者成本。

所以说，生活是社会性的，作为社会动物在社会里生存，总是要付出一些代价…… 以上所描述的就是其中一种，被我理解为 “社会税”。社会税不是哪个中心机构直接征收的；它是分布式的，来自于各个方向，不一定来自于社会的哪一个节点，不像个人所得税那样有申报征收的时间计划，它总是突如其来，它总是出其不意。

很多人不理解。也没仔细想过。所以，每次支付社会税的时候，都觉得难以接受。与之相伴的，只能是各式各样的激烈情绪。反过来，如果能够理解社会税的存在，明白它同时具备的的随机性和必然性，那么就会平静接受这个事实上无法逃脱的成本和代价。没什么情绪可以爆发。该支付就支付，一切都不是问题，唯一的问题，也是唯一值得关注的问题，就是如何获取更多的收入，乃至于不会被社会税所拖累。仅此而已。

Humans are social animals, which is one of the reasons why human societies flourish. We interact and cooperate, either directly or indirectly, enhancing the overall efficiency of our society while reducing costs and ensuring safety. However, society is not perfect, and it never can be.

There can be situations where efficiency is compromised. For instance, the pervasive presence of bureaucracy not only decreases societal efficiency but also imposes unnecessary costs on individuals. Also, the outbreak of war can turn an individual’s life from basic safety to extreme danger.

The cost of participating in society, whether we call it a price or a cost, is something every individual has to bear. Cooperation assumes that everyone involved plays by the rules. However, this is not always the case. Once social cooperation is initiated, those who break the rules will find every possible way to gain an advantage, making rule-followers potentially disadvantaged.

From this perspective, societal rules, and by extension, the legal system, are the costs that rule-abiders are forced to bear. If everyone abided by the rules and avoided taking unfair advantages, our society would run more efficiently, cost-effectively, and safely. However, this is not possible. Therefore, those who play by the rules must bear this cost to protect themselves. Over time, this approach proves effective, as the majority of people are willing to follow the rules.

Instances where individuals feel helpless are all too common in daily life. For example, because terrorists exist, the majority of people have to endure tedious security checks. Alternatively, because society is filled with immature adults, a significant portion of our limited police force is consumed by chaos caused by their childish behaviors.

From another perspective, it’s not just that “the majority are held back by a minority,” but also that “a minority are held back by the majority.” This is particularly evident in the field of education. Most people know nothing about education, yet everyone acknowledges its importance. This paradox creates a dilemma, where the popular methods of education are often flawed. Parents who insist on the correct teaching methods may face numerous challenges, misunderstood and potentially oppressed, only because they and their children also cannot completely separate themselves from society.

Life is social. As social animals living in society, we always have to pay a price. What I’ve described is only one kind of such costs, which I consider a “social tax.” The social tax is not collected by a central authority. It’s distributed, coming from all directions, often unexpectedly from any particular node in society, unlike personal income tax, which has a scheduled time for declaration and collection. It often seems to come from nowhere.

Many people do not understand this or haven’t thought about it carefully. So, each time they pay the social tax, they find it hard to accept, often leading to strong emotional reactions. On the other hand, understanding the existence of the social tax and its randomness and inevitability can help us accept this unavoidable cost and price calmly. The only problem worth focusing on is how to generate more income, so we aren’t held back by the social tax. That’s all there is to it.