capitalism, by definition, is a stupid and foolish human system
POSTED BY: 1kiki
UPDATED: Monday, January 13, 2025 18:50
VIEWED: 28147
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Magons
I don't know if your country has been infiltrated with US-style capitalism yet. You seem to still have a social compact between citizens and government as a counterpoint to capitalism. But here we have what I think of as malignant capitalism, which has reached its tentacles into everything. At this point government exists to serve business.
OONJERAH - We are too dumb to live and smart enough to wipe ourselves out.
"You, who live in any kind of comfort or convenience, do not know how these people can survive these things, do you? They will endure because there is no immediate escape from endurance. Some will die, the rest must live."
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Quote:To an alarming degree, yes.
Originally posted by 1kiki:
At this point government exists to serve business.
Business has always found friends in local & national politics, but now more than ever there's a more or less indirect ownership of government.
My Son made an interesting comment today- he said pure Capitalism would be perfect for everyone as long as no unscrupulous persons participated in the system....
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I'm not sure I agree. I suspect it's not a matter of doing it right, because it seems to be a fundamentally flawed system. Capitalism is about making a profit from the investment of money (capital) into owning the means of production. The goal of capitalism isn't to fill a need, or provide a service, or nurture the environment, or care for the people or anything except make a profit by any means necessary ... and then leverage that profit into greater profit. If that means building deeply inadequate nuclear reactors in an earthquake zone, or selling suspect chemicals by the tens of thousands, or paying starvation wages - so be it. It's the stupidity and foolishness I was referencing in my opening post. You can't have JUST capitalism. By itself I think it is a destructive and self-destructive system.
OONJERAH - We are too dumb to live and smart enough to wipe ourselves out.
"You, who live in any kind of comfort or convenience, do not know how these people can survive these things, do you? They will endure because there is no immediate escape from endurance. Some will die, the rest must live."
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Quote:Well, this depends on your concept of Capitalism in the first place, and also on the participants, as my Son said.
Originally posted by 1kiki:
I'm not sure I agree. I suspect it's not a matter of doing it right, because it seems to be a fundamentally flawed system.
It's the stupidity and foolishness I was referencing in my opening post. You can't have JUST capitalism. By itself I think it is a destructive and self-destructive system.
My concept of Capitalism is profit building through fair business. If all Capitalists had this as their definition, it would not be self destructive. The business of government should be making Capitalism adhere to this concept (the same way it makes you adhere to speed limits). Unfortunately, Capitalism has the means (money) to buy get-out-of-restriction-free cards. This makes the self destruction possible- the ultimate goal of unrestricted selfish Capitalism is ONE man with everything, and all others with just enough to survive servicing him.
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Quote:
Originally posted by 1kiki:
I'm not sure I agree. I suspect it's not a matter of doing it right, because it seems to be a fundamentally flawed system.
It's the stupidity and foolishness I was referencing in my opening post. You can't have JUST capitalism. By itself I think it is a destructive and self-destructive system.
I agree, what we need do, is get those with it all out of the process of writing the laws that protect their greed. It is not our congressmen who write the laws but corporate lobbyists. Why, because it is not us that elects our congressmen it is Lobbyists and their money. We desperately need good campaign finance laws and to let bipartisan judges fix all the redistricting that lend to congressmen listening to the radical few.
si shen
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"If all Capitalists had this as their definition, it would not be self destructive."
Ultimately I think it would be, even if people weren't being rapaciously greedy and only a little bit greedy.
Profit is the difference between what you pay the person who does the work and what you sell the product for. In capitalism the person who makes the Mercedes, by definition, can't afford to buy it. Maybe they can afford a Yaris. The person who makes the Yaris can't buy one. Maybe they buy a bicycle. The person who makes the bicycle buys shoes. And the person who makes the shoes ...
And every time the cycle goes around on every item, profit gets sipped out of the system until all of the money is in the hands of the profiters and none in the hands of the workers.
OONJERAH - We are too dumb to live and smart enough to wipe ourselves out.
"You, who live in any kind of comfort or convenience, do not know how these people can survive these things, do you? They will endure because there is no immediate escape from endurance. Some will die, the rest must live."
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Quote:That's a valid & contemporary definition of Capitalism all right. As it exists today, at its core, it is pure economic violence, adorned with systematic resource destruction.
Originally posted by 1kiki:
Profit is the difference between what you pay the person who does the work and what you sell the product for. In capitalism the person who makes the Mercedes, by definition, can't afford it.
All for the sake of having too much.
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"All for the sake of having too much." Interesting concept. I need to think on it.
OONJERAH - We are too dumb to live and smart enough to wipe ourselves out.
"You, who live in any kind of comfort or convenience, do not know how these people can survive these things, do you? They will endure because there is no immediate escape from endurance. Some will die, the rest must live."
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Quote:
Originally posted by 1kiki:
Magons
I don't know if your country has been infiltrated with US-style capitalism yet. You seem to still have a social compact between citizens and government as a counterpoint to capitalism. But here we have what I think of as malignant capitalism, which has reached its tentacles into everything. At this point government exists to serve business.
The most depressing aspect of our current government is the enthusiasm for which it embraces the characteristics of the failed state of the USA.
Just slashed funding for education, health, welfare and the elderly in what has been one of the least popular budgets of all time. Even my right winged leaning friend/s hates it. And that's saying something.
It's got tea party fervour stamped all over it, an imported ideology that doesn't fit with this nation. Mind you, we've been pushed down that path by successive governments since the 80's, of both 'spectrums' if you can call the tweedle dee tweedle dum of choice a spectrum.
A classic example. Last government wanted to introduce a super profits tax for mining companies.
Quote:
The Minerals Resource Rent Tax (MRRT) is a tax on profits generated from the exploitation of non-renewable resources in Australia.[1] It was a replacement for the proposed Resource Super Profit Tax (RSPT).
The tax, levied on 30% of the "super profits" from the mining of iron ore and coal in Australia, was introduced on 1 July 2012.[1] A company was to pay the tax when its annual profits reach $75 million, a measure designed so as not to burden small business.[2] The original threshold was to be $50 million until independent MP Andrew Wilkie negotiated an amendment.[3] Around 320 companies will potentially be affected by the changes.[4]
On 24 October 2013, the new coalition government announced a plan to repeal the tax, citing its belief that the tax never raised anywhere near what was predicted, had led to negative impacts on investment in mining projects, and resulted in significant compliance costs. Treasurer Joe Hockey asserted that the repeal of this tax will save the government $13.4 billion.[5] A January 2014 poll conducted by UMR Research, however, found that a majority of Australians still think that multinational mining companies do not pay enough tax. [6] Supporters of the tax also point to continually-large profits produced by Australian-based mining operations, 83% of which are foreign-owned.
Yeah, repealed after a massive marketing campaign by the mining companies who manage to sell their hokey message of 'it's good for the working man bullshit' when really all the profits go to those of this ilk.
Unlike, say Norway which uses revenue from its heavily taxed resources to invest money for infrastructure.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/feb/19/mining-tax-its-ti
me-for-all-australians-to-realise-they-are-being-ripped-off
Well, who do you think we followed.....
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Quote:Hey baby, the USA has not failed. It successfully sucked the money up & funnelled it to the 1% where it belongs. Australia is just getting smart like us.
Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
The most depressing aspect of our current government is the enthusiasm for which it embraces the characteristics of the failed state of the USA.
Okay, bad AURaptor impression...
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