Our understanding of when capitalism is useful to society must change.
That is, to date, society has treated capitalism like a cure-all. Let it run rampant and it will, it has! But now that we’ve seen what such unfettered constraints on this economic machine can do, we need to redefine the parameters under which we should allow it to continue.
I have a simple solution: ask ourselves if a product or service, however it’s created or delivered, has a negative aspect embodied within it — then such products or services must be socially provided. If the product or service has only positive impact, then capitalism is a good choice for its delivery.
Here’s a few examples.
Capitalism Good (safer, cheaper, faster, higher quality, longer lasting, lower ecological impact):
Smartphones, cars, travel (airline, taxi, train, ferry), apparel, hamburgers, pizza, food in general, air-conditioners, lawn chairs, , accounting, cleaning, hygiene products, toys, entertainment, housing, space exploration, mining…
All of these things are good for people when their product or service is optimized — AND — they’re good for corporations in the business of providing them; the more they sell, the happier we and they are.
Socialism Good (Capitalism bad) (some aspect of these have a negative impact on one or more parties):
Military protection, law enforcement, incarceration, fire suppression, healthcare, pharmacology, judicial system, environment protection, regulations management…
All of these things have a negative factor built-in to their existence.
A company hired to put out fires only gets paid to put out fires, so, more fires are good for it. Bad for society.
A company hired to protect you, based on arrests, only gets paid when it arrests. No arrests it goes bankrupt, bad for it.
A company hired to take care of your health will fail if you never get sick, or will profit if you are constantly ill. Good for it when it’s bad for you.
A company that creates medicine to cure ailments, only gets paid when society is sick. If society never gets sick again, bad for it, good for society.
This applies to all of these.
•If it’s good for the company, it’s bad for society.
•If it’s good for society, it’s bad for the company.
Simple rule, simple to explain, easy to apply. (Impossible to enact.)
