one of the most important aspects of the post-enlightenment technological development of capitalism in the imperial core is the manner in which they specifically destroy surplus. like other hierarchical and authoritarian societies, it is important that the surplus is still gathered, but it is even more important that the surplus is ritually destroyed. the surplus now is the labor of imperial core citizens, among other commodities. this labor is ritually destroyed for the vanity of the greatest of the capitalists. if it were instead turned towards the alleviation of socially induced suffering, such suffering could be done away with within the year.