Yes we can.
It’s idiot liberals who cannot understand it.
Otherwise known as standard of living, or collective quality of life.
Since we don’t produce things in the US anymore (relatively speaking) our standard of living should be falling. That correction has been staved off for the last 50 years by the government subsiding a pseudo standard of living at the expense of the future (debt). The crash is going to be hard.
Two classics on the topic:
Hazlitt: “Economics in One Lesson”
Rand: “Capitalism, The Unknown Ideal”
The best way to understand capitalism...and the best way to contrast it with another widely employed economic system...is to look at East and West Germany...and North and South Korea.
“Supply and demand of products.”
Capitalism is the free employment of capital resources in business and governmental affairs
The US adopted the Constitution in 1788 following Adam Smith’s “THE WEALTH OF NATIONS”. Within 40 years we were an up and coming World Power.
Castro took over Cuba in 1959, and after 60 years of Communist rule they still cannot make “La Revo-loo-sion” work.
Did America invent Capitalism or just it just practice it better than everyone else due to our revolutionary ideals of Freedom, Liberty and Justice fought for and laid down by the Founders?
I think the author is wrong on a few things.
Capitalism is a social system based on private ownership of the means of production. It is characterized by the pursuit of material self-interest, while being subordinated to and circumscribed by natural rights. And it rests on a foundation of the cultural influence of reason.
Based on its foundation and essential nature, capitalism is further characterized by:
-saving
-capital accumulation
-voluntary exchange
-money
-financial self-interest
-profit motive
-freedoms of economic competition and economic inequality
-price system
-harmony of the material self-interests of all the individuals who participate in it.
Give me $10, and I’ll explain it to you.
Capitalism is kind of a misnomer. Free markets is a better description.
The term “capitalism” was almost unknown in the English world until first popularised by English translations of Das Kapital in 1867. This was the work of the father of communism, Karl Marx. The title was translated into English variously as The Capital or simply, Capital.
It was a derogatory term that the free market embraced.
The “free market” of the feudal years briefly discussed by the article wasn’t free as the peasants lived under the heavy hand of royalty.
Excellent article.
Note: In 1958 Cuba had the sixth highest per capita income in the world. Then Marxism happened. Today the average wage is 20 dollars a month. You cannot live on 20 dollars a month. Thus, the state controls distribution and subsidies of all aspects of the Cuban economy. This gives the state total control of its population. Today Cuba lives in poverty, fear and despair.
Note: Pre Chavez Venezuela had the highest standard of living in Latin America. Today the average wage is 33 dollars a month. You cannot live on 33 dollars a month. Thus, the state controls distribution and subsidies of all aspects of the Venezuelan economy. This gives the state total control of its population. Today Venezuela lives in poverty, fear and despair. It should be noted that those at the top in Venezuela and Cuba are of immense wealth stolen from the people.
Poverty, fear, corruption, and despair are built into a Marxist economy. It has always been so and always will be so.
The voluntary exchange of goods and services.
The unseen hand is now artificial interest rates, government grands, loans, bacsktops, the Fed and other forms of government largess.
She spells it all out in detail.
Nothing more than: A transaction between two parties believed to be mutually beneficial that doesn’t violate anti-trust laws.
The United States invented capitalism? Come on.
Maybe they’re confused between capitalism and corporatism.
That said, the original form of economics in this country was laissez-faire and it should continue to be so.
Thanks to the fact that I have a pre-communist webster’s dictionary, there are very simple definitions:
Capitalism = an economic system where production and distribution are controlled privately.
Socialism = an economic system where production is private and distribution is government controlled.
Communisum = an economic system where production and distribution are government controlled.
Capitalism is actually a word coined by marx so should not be used by freedom loving people.
The best way to describe it is free markets and limited government. Sorta what the US Constitution was trying to establish.