Why is capitalism associated with freedom?

[Im Still Ballin]

Because it's not.

People market it as some equal opportunity scheme, where if you put in the hard work, you'll be rewarded. And if you don't, you're a loser, or not trying hard enough.

But the truth is that it's completely unequal in opportunity, which means we shouldn't associate it with freedom.

Nepotism, cronyism, crony-capitalism -- these are terms you should familiarize yourselves with.

Capitalism to many may seem to be free, but capitalism, in its orthodoxy, is a system that relies on authoritative, controlling, and exploitative relationships, most notably between that of capitalists and workers.

This is not something that emerges out of a devolving system but rather is present in framework of the system itself.

Bottom line: Exploitation is a natural element to capitalism, which is why it's inherently not free.

[I'm Smart]

https://cdn.dribbble.com/users/3683190/screenshots/8631389/media/3862fb67eead2fc355e2351441d87b19.gif

[iamgine]

Because it's an economic system where individuals are free to decide on the use of their assets.

As simple as that.

[fsvr54]

The state doesnt force you to work or go to any mandated jobs. You're free to open any business you want, theres a million ways to make money.

[Patrick Chewing]

Because it's an economic system where individuals are free to decide on the use of their assets.

As simple as that.

/thread


OP isn't that bright.

[Rolando]

It is a good system but it also needs tweaking every once in a while. There are rules to this competitive game called Capitalism.

Just like the NBA or NFL.....Every year, the rules are scrutinized and updated or changed, if necessary, to inprove the quaility of play. Big men were dominating the NBA and the game lacked spacing, so they introduced the 3 pointer which was a great success and helped the League immensely.....Anyway, you see where I am going.

Capitalism in the US needs a bit of tweeking. The great "American Dream" is at the core of all of it: The idea that anyone who is willing to put in the work can elevate himself and his family to be "Middle Class". But as anyone who wants to investigate the general trends can see from the stats; The Middle Class is dying. The American Dream is dying. The stats show that soon there will be the Rich and the Poor and very few people in between.

So, if this Capitilism competition wants to survive as a somewhat competitive and entertaining sport. The NCA (National Capitalism Association) has to tweak the rules a bit. Probably shouldn't have sent all those manufacturing jobs over to the CCA (Chinese Capitalism Association). Looks like that's actually where the American Dream has gone. Check out the recent stats for their Middle Class. Also, the NCA shouldn't have cut the tax rate for the wealthy to the degree that is has. During the 50's 60's and 70's, when the Middle Class was booming, the corporate rates were much higher than today. Maybe the NCA could at least level the playing field for everyone's children by making Higher Education tuition free.....So children of wealthy parents and children of poor parent compete based on performance alone.

There are other tweaks and adjustments that could be made to preserve a properly competitive environment but, as it stands right now, the Wealthy have won....And they can't be challenged because basically they sponsor both Parties of the government. Ever since Bill Clinton sold out the Democratic Party the game has been over. You can also credit Reagan with reducing the top tax rate from 70% to 28%.....

Eventually there will be enough social unrest to seriously threaten the dominant position of the Wealthy. It started under Trump. It will continue under Biden who is even more corporatist and corrupt. Eventually the society will crack. It is coming from lower income white people......They are pointing the blame for their frustration at Blacks, at Mexicans, at Chinese.....But eventually they will realize it is their own government which is killing the American Dream.

[I'm Smart]

OP has already successfully caught four separate fish in this thread. I'm immeasurably disappointed.

[Atlantis]

Because it's not.

People market it as some equal opportunity scheme, where if you put in the hard work, you'll be rewarded. And if you don't, you're a loser, or not trying hard enough.

But the truth is that it's completely unequal in opportunity, which means we shouldn't associate it with freedom.

Nepotism, cronyism, crony-capitalism -- these are terms you should familiarize yourselves with.

Capitalism to many may seem to be free, but capitalism, in its orthodoxy, is a system that relies on authoritative, controlling, and exploitative relationships, most notably between that of capitalists and workers.

This is not something that emerges out of a devolving system but rather is present in framework of the system itself.

Bottom line: Exploitation is a natural element to capitalism, which is why it's inherently not free.

Let's say that I bust my ass digging ditches in my backyard and then fill them back in. I work 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. I've worked hard. But I haven't created any value for anyone or done something that people need or want, and I do this for 30 years. Nobody needs a ditch dug in their own house and then filled back in over and over again. Despite my tens of thousands of hard work, I won't be paid a dime for it.

Now, let's say that I build a new product that people really need or want that nobody has ever built before or improve an existing product so much that it's way better than anything that exists on the market, but I build a prototype in only a month and am able to attract enough capital and investors that I can just hire people to realize my vision and work no harder than the typical middle class person. My leadership skills and charisma are so compelling that people follow my lead. The company goes public in two years and I make billions of dollars.

These are extreme examples, but they prove a point. Hard work that doesn't actually solve a problem or serve a human need or want SHOULD NOT be rewarded. Because it is insane to do so and ends up wasting scarce resources. Everyone in the economy is somewhere between the two extremes of the first guy who mindlessly does work that is literally worthless and the second guy who intelligently organizes resources to creatively solve a problem and does as little work as possible. It stands to reason that people are paid for how effectively they meet other people's needs and wants, not how they hard they work, and that's right and it's fair, and it's the only rational way that society can be organized. And the social system that recognizes this is basically capitalism.

It's not just how things work in modern society but how they've always worked.

Now imagine you are a hunter living in the Stone Age. You keep saying that you are working really hard to hunt the bison and actually are, but you don't actually bring home any meat or kills. You work your ass off, but don't get any respect or social status. And another person who is lazy as **** but is a highly skilled hunter and brings home multiple kills every week with only a few hours of work is respected and admired by his village. Ultimately, this is fair. The lazier hunter who brings home more meat will be disproportionately rewarded by the society he lives in because he provides more value to his community. His work brings results and concrete survival value to his community whereas the unsuccessful hard-working hunter only expends his effort and consumes the resources of the community without providing value in return. Where's the capitalism here? This is a hunter gatherer society that has no private property or capitalism of any kind but the skilled hunter will be respected and esteemed while the crappy hunter won't.

In this world that we live in, some people's work and effort is more productive and brings results that people want and need to survive. Other people work hard but don't actually create much value. And in the end, who's the winner anyway? The rich man and the poor man share the same fate - death. The only place we'll ever find equality and justice is in the grave.

[SouBeachTalents]

OP has already successfully caught four separate fish in this thread. I'm immeasurably disappointed.
Yep, it's so obvious too