[ywain]

I'm not sure I understand how your analogy is relevant to the discussion, but you should know that the current consensus is that the pyramids were build by paid laborers, not slaves. Cf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_ancient_Egypt#Great...

[BobbyJo]

The point I was trying to make is that being part of building something great isn't always a reward in and of itself.

The laborers of many great works reaped no rewards for their efforts, and the people remembered for the work were often those standing on their backs.