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queenofnothing: 9 months ago

Why does EVERYONE say Capitalism is a good thing? It does not seem like it is really when there can be far sides.. I want to learn. Ty

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Answer 1

shinypate1: 9 months ago via iPhone | Last edited at 6:56AM on 8/11/2012

Capitalism rests on the principle of individual freedom. Each person is free to achieve his/her dreams and to seek their private good. It is immoral for people to use force or coercion to take away or infringe on that right, as the "public" is but a collection of individuals, and the "state" is noting but individuals socially contracted to provide for their common good. It is NOT a good to take the livlihood of a person to benefit another.
How do you benefit those in need? Through charity. Giving to charity is a good of itself, and when you make a state entitlement, you remove the blessing of giving to help another, from the giver, and you rob from the receiver their exercise of gratitude. one only does this if there is a compelling state need (famine, war, etc).
In a free society, no individual benefits at the expense of another: men exchange the values they create in voluntary trade to mutual gain. If Communism or Socialism were better, it would have led the world in advancements and fed the world; in fact, both have been shown bankrupt and unable to manage the affairs of men better than capitalism, which produced (according to Angus Madison, Phases of Capitalist Development) incredible results.
A free, capitalist economy has never existed anywhere in the world. The closest the world came to a free market was during the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain and during the late 19th century in the United States. The Industrial Revolution was a period of unprecedented economic growth and unimaginable improvements in quality of life. In less than two hundred years, the life of most people in the Western world changed from a a short life filled with poverty, plague, and near-constant war to a modern, comfortable existence that even the kings of medieval Europe couldn't have imagined. Since 1820, the leading capitalist nations have increased their wealth sixteen fold, their populations more than four-fold, their productivity twenty-fold. Annual working hours went from 3,000 to less than 1,700 and life expectancy doubled from thirty to over seventy years. The achievement of capitalism! Inequities exist always, even in communism.

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Answer 2

Gators4eva2: 9 months ago via Android

Read animal farm

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ClaraListensprechen: 9 months ago

Definitely. And Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.

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bigred50: 9 months ago

Ohttp://youtu.be/u6H63CD7uQAr watch this old cartoon that explains things perfectly.

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bigred50: 9 months ago

http://youtu.be/u6H63CD7uQA
Let me try again or go to YouTube and search fo Make Mine Freedom

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Answer 3

advancement123: 9 months ago via iPhone

Anything done to the extreme can be a negative thing. A lot of people like to cry communism if you even mention helping the poor- I don't quite understand it- of course the other extreme is fascism

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bigred50: 9 months ago

Government helps the poor by force. Force is bad. Helping the poor should come from our hearts, not our government. I don't understand why people think it is ok to put your hands in my pockets to steal my money so you can give it to those that need it. That's communism/socialism/Marxism and it sure isn't freedom.

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advancement123: 9 months ago via iPhone

Yes but their are a ton of things that the government spends money on that I don't agree with - for example - all the money that was spent on sending a remote control car to Mars

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GrandeChivo: 9 months ago

How about the trillions wasted in the war on poverty? In 1966 LBJ started the war on poverty, 16% of the people were at or below the poverty line. $40 trillion later poverty is at 15.7% That is a little more than "mention helping the poor"
You don't understand because you do not want to.

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Answer 4

caluvox: 9 months ago

It is a good thing, it provides incentive for those who work hard and take risks like opening new businesses. It needs oversight and regulation to make it fair, the current environment is an example of the lack of oversight having allowed the housing and banking fiasco. But if done well it has proven to be the best system in the world.

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bigred50: 9 months ago

Why does it need oversight to make it fair? Capitalism consists of two people trading money for service or product without force but by mutual consent. Government making these choices for us is why in the current state it doesn't work so well. Govt. picks winners and losers --- the bail outs are a good example. It might have saved some jobs but at what cost? Were those jobs worth saving or shoud those companies gone under so others could have a chance to succeed and more stable jobs created?
Look at the bail outs of green companies. Most have failed and was a waste of tax payers money. It would be better and fairer if green companies stood on their own. We would have better products that people might want to buy. It would have created compition for good products and the people could decide which is the best. Government fails every time it gets into peoples business. Most of the time it destroys business's that would have been great.

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caluvox: 9 months ago

Companies are too big, we have ignored the spirit of the anti-trust laws of the late 19th century which led to this situation, with businesses that are "to big to fail". But the fact of the matter is businesses will cheat, if they can, to increase profit, It wasn't just the fiasco in 2007 look at LIBOR and the Barclay's scandal. Just as with any sport, game or civilization there must be rule's and they must be enforced in order for the system to work.

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Answer 5

JamesMcCue: 9 months ago

A pure capitalist economy isn't always a good thing. Basically the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. While a communist economy isn't always a good thing either, as everyone gets the same thing no matter how hard you work or how lazy you are. That's why in the many countries use a mix system where there is government regulation since the government wants to have a strong economy while keeping its people employed and have a decent standard of living. This helps keeps the people happy, and keeps order in the country

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bigred50: 9 months ago

I would not be happy with the government telling me what I have to do to be employed. My daughter-in-law lived under Communism and she was told what she had to study in college. No choice, no freedom to pursue what makes her happy. I can't believe people actually think that government rule is better than freedom to rule your own life. Are you really that needy? Or have you really thought this through?

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GrandeChivo: 9 months ago

Red, the Left only thinks of what to do with other peoples taxes.
They believe that everything should be done by the government.
They believe that they are smarter than the rest of us and have to give us direction and guidance because we need to be led.

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JamesMcCue: 9 months ago

Grande, is it your tax? Or is it American taxes? We are required to forfeit a part with some of our money so that the government is able to afford government programs such as transportation and medicine, and defense, and everything else out there. So you need taxes so that the government can construct and repair roads, wage war, help boost the economy. If it wasn't for "American" taxes, than who would be willing to do all that?

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Answer 6

MadMarcus15: 9 months ago

In socialism, people are equal in pay, giving everyone a chance to live without working. In capitalism, people are equal in opportunity, giving everyone a chance to have more of a life journey.

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bigred50: 9 months ago

Equel in pay and in poverty. Socialism always fails by running out of money, people not working equally and soon the killings start. History has shown us this over and over, yet people look at socialism as some kind of utopia when it truely is a nightmire.

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MadMarcus15: 9 months ago

I didn't want to get that far into it... But you're right anyway. Get it? Right, AND right...

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Answer 7

annaruby: 9 months ago via iPhone | Last edited at 9:07PM on 8/10/2012

You mean here on Ask? Those kids who pretend communism is great are just trolls, and don't genuinely believe this.

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Ash_kicker1: 9 months ago via iPhone

They don't understand... They want something for nothing. We all have the right and opportunities to better ourselves in the capitalist way of life. Republicans give us all the option to get off our butts and do something and the democrats want to give you everything and keep you poor or where you are... Sit on your porch and wait for your check... How disgraceful... Have pride, learn a trade get a job... Be somebody!

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annaruby: 9 months ago via iPhone

Oops I messed up. For some reason when I read that Q, I had the idea that it said "communism" not "capitalism". Ugh my answer doesn't make any sense. @ash I agree, we give out way too many handouts.

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Answer 8

martinezd968: 9 months ago via iPhone

Because it is. At least in this country it is. Is it perfect? No. But it the best system on the planet. People come from all over the world to THIS country with nothing but a dream and the WORK their butts off and they get it. The open businesses and succeed. They do it because they come from places where there is no chance to make it then they come here and they go it. It'd all a matter of how hard you work. It would better if big brother(the federal government) would let people live their lives without do much interference. But that's another topic.

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Answer 9

bigred50: 9 months ago

Although not perfect (nothing is) Capitalism has raised more people out of poverty than any system ever devised in the history of man. Watch the PBS series Free To Choose by Milton Friedman. He explains it simply why it is the best. http://miltonfriedman.blogspot.com/

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