What have capitalists actually accomplished?
Telephone
Telegraph
Radio
Railroad
automobile
television
computers
cell phones
electric lights
electric motors
refrigeration
air conditioning
Open heart surgery
anaesthesia
tractor
combine
chemical fertilizers
Pesticides
DDT
Cheap cotton textiles
explosives
reinforced concrete
cheap mass produced steel
The assembly line
robots
The highest standard of living in the world
The end of mass starvation.
Thanks for an answer at last.
I'm not sure if we should be so glad with all those items though but that's another issue
I notice that there aren't any socialist programs on that list so maybe evil government is required after all to accomplish that
Social programs have done nothing but harm this country. Which of the items do you think shouldn't be on the list?
This should be hilarious.
Tell us, how exactly did the telephone make it into everyone's home, was it pure capitalism?
Was it maybe, like this:
"Around 1917, the idea that everyone in the country should have phone service and that the government should promote that began being discussed in government. AT&T agreed, saying in a 1917 annual report:
"A combination of like activities under proper control and regulation, the service to the public would be better, more progressive, efficient, and economical than competitive systems." In 1918 the federal government nationalized the entire telecommunications industry, with national security as the stated intent. Rates were regulated so that customers in large cities would pay higher rates to subsidize those in more remote areas. Vail was appointed to manage the telephone system with AT&T being paid a percentage of the telephone revenues. AT&T profited well from the nationalization arrangement which ended a year later. States then began regulating rates so that those in rural areas would not have to pay high prices, and competition was highly regulated or prohibited in local markets. Also, potential competitors were forbidden from installing new lines to compete, with state governments wishing to avoid "duplication." The claim was that telephone service was a "
natural monopoly," meaning that one firm could better serve the public than two or more. Eventually, AT&T's market share amounted to what most would regard as a monopolistic share."
History of AT T - Wikipedia the free encyclopedia