SS109 wrote: I think I will keep capitalism even though I admit it does have faults.
I don't think it's a matter of preferring (or not) to keep capitalism, it's a question of whether capitalism can continue to function when it is based on a paradigm that is running up hard against reality. And as I said above, if it collapses, what do we replace it with? I don't know of any system that works any better.
I think part of the impetus to continue kicking the can down the street is to get as much time as we can out of capitalism before it does collapse.
Capitalism is an economic system in which private ownership means profit to the owner. The owner controls the means of production, so the profit belongs to the private business owner. In capitalism, the free market determines the production, distribution and price of goods and services. A free market is an unregulated supply and demand with little government interference in matters of trade. Price agreements are made by buyers and sellers and the market dictates supply and demand.
What you are calling capitalism is not capitalism. What we have is a government program plagued with incomprehensible rules regarding mergers, acquisitions, and stock sales, along with wage controls, price controls, protectionism, corporate subsidies, international management of trade, complex and punishing corporate taxes, privileged government contracts to the military-industrial complex, and a foreign policy controlled by corporate interests and overseas investments. Add to this centralized federal mismanagement of farming, education, medicine, insurance, banking and welfare.
Capitalism didn't cause this mess The lack of free markets did.
gmule wrote: Capitalism didn't cause this mess The lack of free markets did.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I've heard this about 25 million times before. "If only" we had "true" free markets, yada yada yada.
But it's all besides the point, anyway. "True" free markets don't do squat to change the fact that capitalism is absolutely dependent on the economy continuing to grow, forever. Something that is simply impossible in a finite world.
AspenValley wrote: I have been reading a lot of books about the Great Depression. It was fairly common in some communities for jobless workers to band together to start little businesses on their own when traditional employers weren't hiring. Maybe develop "incubators" for something like this, or support groups for people trying to brainstorm how to earn some money when they lose their job?
I read about groups in Appalachia getting together to gather and market native mountain herbs, and about groups in Maine making Christmas Wreaths for a co-op where they all chipped in for the marketing in New York City. These probably wouldn't work around here (or maybe they would???) but I'm sure there are things similar people could do.
