You seem to have forgotten that we buy that from Apple. On top of the massive amount of research that we fund one way or anogher.
> Society constitutes them as well, so they are also contributing to the existence of this society, which means they are giving as much as they're receiving.
Society can exist without them but they cannot exist without society. That's a difference you're missing.
>>You seem to have forgotten that we buy that from Apple. On top of the massive amount of research that we fund one way or anogher.
Yes we buy it because the money we pay is worth less to us than the product that they provide us in the exchange. That is what trade results in: both parties benefiting.
Put another way, they are not indebted on account of benefiting from this trade, given they are contributing something of even greater value in exchange for that benefit, and have no more obligation toward society, on account of engaging in large volumes of mutually beneficial trade, than any one else.
>> On top of the massive amount of research that we fund one way or anogher.
That funding is for public research that is freely given away. You can't release scientific knowledge into the public domain and then claim those who benefit from it are indebted. That would be a false pretense of "public domain".
Moreover, the tax revenue generated by Apple, its US-based suppliers and its employees, allows for significant amounts of funding for public research that benefits society at large.
>>Society can exist without them but they cannot exist without society.
That applies to every constituent of society. We cannot say that every single individual owes to society more than it is owed on that account, or else it would mean some non-existent element of society should receive payment on the collective debt of the constituents of society.
> Society constitutes them as well, so they are also contributing to the existence of this society, which means they are giving as much as they're receiving.
Society can exist without them but they cannot exist without society. That's a difference you're missing.