Capitalism has many critics, however, none of those critics have been able to come up with a better economic system. Capitalism drags millions of people out of poverty every year and creates the networks that sustain our lifestyle.
The richest countries in the world, with the highest amount of benefits towards their citizens, are all capitalist, including China who calls itself communist, but who operates in the international market as a capitalist country. And the citizens of the noncapitalist countries, want to move to the capitalist countries.
If we look at current events, the Coronavirus, for example, capitalist countries and capitalist corporations were able to deploy millions of dollars towards research and development, manufacturing, and distribution of a vaccine which was developed in record time. Millions of people will owe their lives to this capitalist miracle.
Sure, capitalism has many shortcomings. There are millions of people who don’t understand it and thus, are left behind.
From an employee point of view, in most corporations, there are opportunities to go up the ranks, no matter where you start. There are hundreds of examples where an employee started in a corporation at the lowest level, moved up the ranks and became the CEO of the company. One such example is Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors.
There are other examples such as Michael Dell, who started assembling computers in his dorm room and went on to create DELL Computers.
But to be a successful capitalist, you don’t have to be an extraordinary business person. You just need to be employed, save money, invest it in the stock market, and within two or three or three decades, live the capitalist dream, which is to live out of your own capital.
A successful business, operating ethically and sustainably, can create thousands of well-paying jobs, deliver long-term returns for investors and pension holders, and produce goods and services which increase their customer’s quality of life.
Two examples come to my mind. The first one is Amazon.
Amazon produces goods and services which are adored by their clients. Throughout the years, Amazon has created such a level of satisfaction and loyalty that customers don’t hesitate for a second before purchasing from them. The company employs almost one million workers and people are eager to work for the company. College students want to work for Amazon and employees without education credentials also see Amazon as the highest paying employer.
Another example is Google. I am an avid user of Google’s services and products. From its Gmail to its Google maps. I can not think of a better service or product. And as far as employee satisfaction, for many people, some of their highest ambitions are to work for Google.
The backlash against capitalism
Perhaps the highest critique against capitalism, is social inequality.
When we see an athlete who is far superior to their competitor, we congratulate that athlete for their talent and effort. When we see an artist who is far superior to the others, we wait in line for hours to buy their tickets and we pay exorbitant prices to see them. We congratulate them and make them our idols.
But when we see a business person who is superior to the others and that person gets compensated by the market. We vilify them.
I think we owe some gratitude to these billionaires who have created products and services that we adore. When I order a cartilage of ink for my printer via Amazon, and I get it at my door steps in two days, I have nothing but gratitude for Jeff Bezos. When I open my Gmail every morning to answer my messages, I have nothing but gratitude for the Google boys.
Philanthropy
As opposed to athletic or artistic ability whereas the beneficiaries can not redistribute their good fortune, most successful business people can indeed redistribute the fruits of their labor in the form of philanthropy.
Most billionaires, when they retire from their main job, they become involved in philanthropy. They give away almost everything that they have made. Bill Gates has devoted the rest of his life (after Microsoft) to philanthropy and has vowed to give away 95% of his wealth. Warren Buffet has pledged to give away 99% of his wealth. And the examples are endless.
Points for improvement
Yes, capitalism has to find a way to help out those who are left behind, but when we compare capitalism vs. socialism or communism, capitalism comes as the most powerful source to solve society’s problem.
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