by Craig Willms
Earlier I critiqued socialism, which I find to be dangerous nonsense, an unviable pipedream that's destructive to the human spirit. The opposing force is called capitalism. The word capitalism carries negative connotations for political purposes, but really, or I should say ideally it's a meritorious transactional free market system. Indeed, our 'capitalism' has its problems; it is an imperfect system for imperfect people. Socialism strives to create a perfectly fair system. Perfect sounds so good, but perfection does not survive its own corrupted elements. Perfect, it is said, is the enemy of the good. All we can reasonably expect is good, perfection is a fairytale. Socialism, communism or whatever you want to call it, seeks a pure system, a classless system but it always devolves into totalitarian control and abject misery for all but the powerful. In a capitalistic society powerful people do very, very well, and the vast majority willing to put their boots on in the morning and go to work do quite well. Quite well is not good enough, the socialists demand perfection. They will tear down what is good in service of their fairytale.
It's the story of the haves and the have nots. The never ending story. In feudal times the haves were few and far between. The have nots were the vast majority. If not for the industrial age and the advent of steam power and the attendant wealth it unleashed, it was likely to stay that way forever. As human societies began to rely on the power of non-human energy in the form of fossil fuels and material scientific advancements to get work done individual wealth increased and spread rapidly. Those with capital, or those who could attract capital increased their wealth exponentially, and millions of people rode on their coattails.
It was during the early years of industrialism that socialism and communism rose up. The barons of industry would mercilessly exploit the workforce and try to crush laws and rules and uprisings that would try to curtail their monopolistic power. The collectivist movement was born out of the injustices the workers suffered to the early industrial giants. Today worker protection is quite good, but the socialists have turned the natural inequity inherent in all ventures into their sledgehammer. It's not completely without merit, but again they would destroy what is good and righteous for the ridiculous promise of perfection.
Those early wealth barons sought to protect their wealth. To that end they rigged the system to their advantage. In the normal churn of a dynamic free market the winners would win until they didn't then someone else would rise up. Something better would come along and take the place of what came before. In modern parlance it is called creative destruction. It is the natural ebb and flow of the human condition. The barons couldn't have upstarts and government rules supplanting their dominance. They used the power of their money to rig the playing field, to bestow advantages for themselves while keeping the upstarts out. There was push back from governments and eventually anti-monopoly laws emerged. Therefore, the "system" the barons developed over the decades that followed, diversified their holdings, and cleverly obscured their unscrupulous activities. They used their vast wealth to buy off politicians at all levels - as needed. That's where we are today. The barons morphed into a few dozen massive corporations that own and control hundreds and hundreds of entities that all appear to be independent businesses.
It was the financial system the locked it all in. Using a revolving door the money men moved in and out of government positions making rules and paying the right politicians to ensure they remain uber-wealthy and all powerful. Wall Street and London's Square Mile is their homefield. Thus, a rigged system.
Despite this, along the way millions upon millions of people have generally lived good lives. Capitalism delivers the goods for the many. This is particularly true in the U.S. and the West. Ordinary people could buy into public companies and increase their personal wealth. It was good indeed, yet millions of people still live in misery. It's an imperfect world full of imperfect people.
The socialists rely on the ignorance of the populace, the sunshine they sell and the lies they tell. It is grievance politics based on the very real truth that everything is in fact imperfect. There is no shortage of the aggrieved. Envy is the balm they spread over the world. Still, the world capitalism built is the place where the fruit is sweeter, a fruit that is distributed to feed billions. Global poverty has never been lower, but that's not good enough for the socialists. They want government, preferably a global government to manage everything, to make everything fair. What could possibly go wrong?
Obviously, this is a 30,000 foot reading of history, but it is beyond question that socialism is incapable of delivering prosperity and innovation and human well being like capitalism has. Beyond the pipedream there is no personal incentive inherent in socialism, and it is incentive that motivates humanity to build a better world.
Do people really think that a classless equity will result from a socialist system? Will the powerful simply disperse their wealth, and the world will alight in a rousing chorus of kumbaya? Did someone say pipedream. There will always be the rich and powerful, and thus under socialism we'll find ourselves in a new world of feudalism. Second verse, same as the first. Seriously, think about it, why would so many billionaires continue to fund socialist causes if they thought it would destroy them? They fund socialist causes because it will further cement their wealth and power. How can so many in this world indulge in such willful blindness?
It's capitalism that needs to prevail, but it won't if the blatant system rigging is allowed to continue. If socialism wins, capitalism will never reemerge, and the world will live in abject misery in perpetuity. That is, except for the powerful and the wealthy. At such time, no one will even be allowed to condemn socialism. Pay attention to what is happening in the UK today. That's what's coming to America, where capitalism and individualism will make its final stand.
