What ever happened to Capitalism ?

My consternation about what is happening these days with giveaways to the super-rich, the manipulation of wealth of this country toward the right, deregulation of industries to favor big business and destruction of the middle class created by virtue of capitalism, led me to this question;

What ever happened to Capitalism ?

Capitalism is an economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market. Economic system in which most of the means of production are privately owned, and production is guided and income distributed largely through the operation of markets.

Capitalism as a way of thinking is fundamentally individualistic, that is, that the individual is the center of capitalist endeavor. Translation is that all men are not equal. The meaning is that each man is individual and particular to the best of his ability to adopt and survive. This idea draws on all concepts of individuality: that all individuals are different, that society is composed of individuals who pursue their own interests, that individuals should be free to pursue their own interests ( this, in capitalism, is called "economic freedom"), and that, in a democratic sense, individuals pursuing their own interests will guarantee the interests of society as a whole.

Capitalism as a way of thinking is fundamentally based on the large-scale social goal of capitalism is to produce wealth, that is, to make the national economy wealthier and more affluent than it normally would be. Therefore, in a concept derived from the idea of progress, the entire structure of capitalism as a way of thinking is built on the idea of "economic growth." This economic growth has no prescribed end; the purpose is for nations to grow steadily wealthier

Economics, the analysis of the production and distribution of goods, has to be abstracted out of other areas of knowledge. In other words, capitalism as a way of thinking divorces the production and distribution of goods from other concerns, such as politics, religion, ethics, etc., and treats production and distribution as independent human endeavors. In this view, the fundamental purpose and meaning of human life is productive labor.

The economic world view treats the economy as if it were mechanical, that is, subject to certain predictable laws. This means that economic behavior can be rationally calculated , and these rational calculations are always future-directed . So, the mechanistic view of the economy leads to an exclusively teleological world picture; capitalism as a manipulation of the "machine" of the economy is always directed to the future and intentionally regards the past as of no concern. This, in part, is one of the fundamental origins of modernity, the sense that the cultural present is discontinuous with the past.

The fundamental unit of meaning in capitalist and economic thought is the object , that is, capitalism relies on the creation of a consumer culture, a large segment of the population that is not producing most of what it is consuming. Since capitalism, like mercantilism, is fundamentally based on distributing goods-moving goods from one place to another-consumers have no social relation to the people who produce the goods they consume. In non-capitalist societies, such as tribal societies, people have real social relations to the producers of the goods they consume. But when people no longer have social relations with others who make the objects they consume, that means that the only relation they have is with the object itself. So part of capitalism as a way of thinking is that people become "consumers," that is, they define themselves by the objects they purchase rather than the objects they produce.

Social-democratic system is to regard state regulation ( without state ownership) as sufficient to ensure economic growth and a fair distribution of income. System of social organization in which private property and the distribution of income are subject to social control; also, the political movements aimed at putting that system into practice. The philosophy of socialism is that all participating members of that society deserve a fair share of wealth or at least minimum staples of society as health care, job, or living corders. There are very successful social-democratic system throughout the world, but it can also degenerate fast into a corrupt government that would control it's citizens through dictatorship.

Capitalism is a natural evolution of society based on individuals desire to be free in their decision to work and pursue happiness. It regards the best capability of each individual, and moves society as a whole. The reinvesting of capital into the future assures prosperity to future generations, moving the national product forward. It builds infrastructure in it's desire to distribute goods and build new markets. By excellence of improving production by organization and application of technology, product per capita increases and the need for development of new markets spurs entrepreneurship. Capitalism by virtue is so successful in building wealth that there is the danger to evolve into a more drastic form as dictatorships through monopolization of wealth and power by a single individual or a group of people that control wealth and national resources. For that reason government intervention is imperiously necessary to regulate certain capitalistic behavior and write anti-trust laws to prevent deterioration of economic conditions, take-overs and creation of super monopoly as an oligarchy.

"The moral justification of capitalism, does not lie in the altruist claim that it represents the best way to achieve the "common good" It is true that capitalism does - if that catch-fraze has any meaning - but this is merely a secondary consequence. The moral justification of capitalism lies in the fact that it is the only system consonant with man's rational nature, that it protects man's survival qua man and that it's ruling principle" - Ayn Rand

Capitalism by virtue of it's philosophy has created democracy, intrinsically to level the field for business endeavor. To enable entrepreneurship society has to be legislated free, since free enterprise is not possible under restriction. Men are not equal, but opportunities should be equally enabled for each member of the society.

Often, democrats are accused of being socialists. That is a myth. Democrats are fighting and safeguarding democracy that is only possible in a capitalist society. Democrats are fighting for capitalism and democracy, the true natural social form.

(Some excerpts from Adam Smith, Richard Hooker, Ayn Rand, American Heritage Dictionary etc.)