Skylar
Diamond Member
- Jul 5, 2014
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For the enlightenment of liberals who consistently don't get this
Capitalism is economic freedom. Consumers, producers, employers, employees, businesses, individuals, we make our own choices for our own interest. That drives market efficiency which benefits everyone. The primary role of government in capitalism is to provide civil courts to redress civil crimes (e.g., breach of contract) and criminal courts to redress crimes (e.g., fraud).
An informed buyer/employee is best served with complete and accurate information. I consider it a legitimate role for government to require accurate disclosures. So for example I oppose government forcing a business to hire or serve blacks. However, I am in favor of government forcing them to disclose that clearly and accurately to other potential employees or customers. I also consider it legitimate for government to enforce accurate advertising, whether products were tested or not and how thoroughly, that sort of thing. Government should not force them to do those things, but it can require them to disclose accurately what they did and didn't do to facilitate better buying decisions.
Socialism is central economic planning. Central economic planning means that consumers, producers, employers, employees, businesses, individuals must make decisions that are not in their own interest. Otherwise central planning would not be required, capitalism would yield the same result. And the only way to get people to act against their own interest is force, and only the government can use force.
Various forms of socialism are full socialism where all industry is owned by government, fascism where industry is technically in private ownership but all decisions are dictated or approved by government and crony capitalism where government helps the businesses in quid pro quo fashion where the businesses fund the politicians and the politicians write laws to assist those businesses. In all those cases, planning is central and enforced by government guns to force the people to act against their own interest. To the people, they are the same, you have the choices government gives you.
Great read... but ironically, I have a shorter version:
Capitalism is the free exchange of goods and services to the mutual profit of both parties.
Capitalism requires that the ownership and decisions be made by private individuals.
The former is self sustaining, as such is the natural order of economics, while the latter is not sustainable at all, with a dismal failure being found at every point where such has been tried, beyond the scope of very small, familial communities...
Capitalism in its pure form doesn't last long. As its unsustainable. It either degenerates into varying degrees of oligarchy as concentrations of private power corrupt the political system, or the people regulate it to prevent such abuses.
Regulated capitalism is the only sustainable variant of capitalism. And it works much better than unregulated capitalism.