Economy

Rave

What is wrong with capitalism?

Posted 24 months ago|21 comments|482 views
Written by
Siempre Solo
Auburn, NY
What is wrong with capitalism? Should we get pissed of at people like Sam Walton, Larry page or Ray Kroc? Bill Gates is as famous for his altruism as he is for his operating system so tell me please: What is wrong with capitalism? We get angry when we see the wealthy get wealthier but how many of us would willingly and voluntarily put a cap on our income and still continue to work for free? I surmise that not a darn soul would be so stupid! Am I right? We get mad at the wealthy because it is part of human nature to be jealous of another persons prosperity.

Biblically speaking the Tenth commandment of the Decalogue admonishes against coveting. Doesn’t it? Obviously the poor do not have anything that the rich could possibly want unless of course your name is David and you are King of the Jewish Nation and one of your officer’s whose name is Uriah that has a wife who is a gorgeous hottie named Bathsheba that you want for yourself. That would be the exception so the rule is that the poor should not envy the rich or that the rich should not envy the richer. Why is this important to remember?

It’s important to remember because capital is what drives our all to important economy and capital gets invested either aggressively or conservatively based upon the individual investor and so profit or success in a venture is relative to the risk taken by the investor, isn’t it? It is then only fair that he who risks more should be rewarded greater than he who doesn’t.

People complain about their 9 to 5’s but they don’t do anything to escape their ruts. Do they? But then they want big donkey salaries and huge pensions and matching benefits but they took no risks in anything. They then want a huge wealth tax on the rich to help subsidize their lazy not pulling their fair share behinds. This is not fair! If you want a big payout then you have to take serious risks. That is what it’s all about!

Thank you for reading!
EMAIL|FLAG THIS POST
COMMENTS
Out Of The Box
Out Of The Box
 Moderator
24 months ago: But then you have those, mostly underpaid, under-inspired, under-motivated people who want everyone to make the same amount, no matter what they put into the pot. Which leads to everyone being underpaid, under-motivated and under-inspired.

It reminds me of the story in the Bible about the two women who went before Solomon arguing over a newborn. The socialist woman said she would rather have the newborn (our economy) cut in half so they could each share it, (never mind that it would kill the child).
Out Of The Box
Out Of The Box
 Moderator
24 months ago: Ok, so it's early in the morning.
Out Of The Box
Out Of The Box
 Moderator
24 months ago: Nice illustration in your picture, by the way. Very inventive. (Should I tell him that the building is spelled with an "o"? Nah, I'll restrain myself.)
24 months ago: Siempre:

Is that you?
24 months ago: Siempre:

What you have just (perfectly) described is completely foreign AND THE ENEMY to Obama and his minions.

24 months ago: I'm all choked up! Maybe some of this is starting to rub off.
nettik
nettik
Los Angeles, CA
24 months ago: There are some problems with capitalism. One being that the shareholders don't give a care in the world about what happens at the company as long as their stock prices increase and they get their dividends.

This leads to slavery throughout the world because somebody will always work for less than somebody else. Considering not all nations enforce minimum wages, some disgusting things happen.

And to answer your question. Most people don't complain. Some work at Los Angeles Times for 30 years only to have the Chicago Tribune buy it up and drain out the pensions and then sell it again. A result of capitalism.

Capitalism is a great system as long as it is well regulated. Unfortunately these **** in Washington get paid big bones to make sure that the regulations are in favor of their benefactors.
Siempre Solo
Siempre Solo
Auburn, NY
24 months ago: What you are so eloquently referring to Nettik is not caused by capitalism. It is the product of corruption and greed. Regulations only help but to a certain extent. Corrupt people will seek to find ways around regulations. Ethics is something that can be taught but hard to enforce. How do you force someone to be ethical? That comes from within and some people just don’t want to be ethical. Capitalism is not the problem though and we all know it! Money is power and some use their power for good while others use it for evil. That is all part of being human.
24 months ago: Yep!

Here's something to consider. If pay should be relative to risk, they why is the lowly worker paid so poorly when the CEO is paid overly well? The lowly worker risks everything they own, the ability to put food on the table and fuel in the car to accept a job at many of the corporations in the US. They don't get a "golden parachute" big enough to pay for 10 or 20 families to live for the rest of their lives if they get fired or even laid off. All they get is MAYBE unemployment that won’t cover half the month’s bills and that’s before they think about buying food.

Their yearly pay is not enough to pay for a 20 room mansion in one month, a 40 foot yacht in another, the entire years utilities in the next one and fund their pension and college for the 2.5 kids in another, and you can forget about taxes coming out of the rich CEO's pay, he doesn't pay any so that two month's pay the lowly paid worker has to fund doesn't affect him. That's only six months and already the lowly paid worker is down to food and other bills and we are only in the first year of the CEO's contract which lasts for five and bonuses haven't been decided yet, don't worry, they will be equal to several years worth of salary, 10 maybe 20 years worth PER year of the contract.

The CEO risks nothing but his name, he doesn’t even risk his own money by investing in the company he has been hired to run. The lowly paid worker risks it all. Someone doesn’t like him and out the door he goes. CEO needs a spot for wife’s sister’s daughter to work and out the door he goes, CEO needs to improve the bottom line, out the door he goes, CEO needs….. you get my drift.

The CEO risks nothing and gets rewarded for running the company into the ground and they praise him for it.

Lowly paid worker risks it all and gets the shaft.

What’s wrong with Capitalism? Nothing but greed and corruption, the rest of it is fine.
Out Of The Box
Out Of The Box
 Moderator
24 months ago: Six

You have a good point but I think you went a little over the edge with it. Really, you lost me when you said they pay no taxes.

And in the overall picture, just how many CEO's are reaping these obscene, tax free, risk free benefit packages?

And furthermore, do you think these CEO's hire themselves? No, I would think that whoever owns the company they are executive officering hires them, and they are taking a risk with the company's hard earned money to invest it in the leadership and expertise of the man they choose.

Other than that, I agree with your comment. Oh yeah, except that one day I hope to own a multi-billion dollar business, and I am going to be my own CEO, and I'm going to pay myself obscenely large salaries.
nettik
nettik
Los Angeles, CA
24 months ago: Capitalism is driving by greed. What are you talking about?

To pursue more and more money. Why does Bill Gates need more money? Because he wants more money and thats fine, but when it comes time to pay taxes then he should pay them.

Goldman Sachs went from paying 6 billion in taxes to 14 million. Why? Why? Why? Because they ****ed up and now we rescue them with our socialist money. Our representatives have become their representatives because they have money and we don't... because they own the media and we don't is why we are getting raped.

If you want to argue capitalism is not the problem, then you eliminate greed. Because I guess that is not supposed to be allowed either right?
Out Of The Box
Out Of The Box
 Moderator
24 months ago: Regardless, Republicans or Democrats, Goldman Sachs generally has somebody in the treasury department. And the big banks generally have somebody in the Federal Reserve.

And you said it, not me. Greed is the problem. It is not capitalism to manipulate the government into giving you billions of dollars at the taxpayers expense. That is socialism.
24 months ago: OOTB, true, I did fudge a bit on the taxes thing. Compared to me, they don't, the amount they spend of their money after living expenses is basically zero when compared to the amount I spend after living expenses. I know they don't get off tax free, but nearly so considering that they are still getting richer and richer at a faster and faster rate every year while the rest of us are slowing getting poorer and poorer.
24 months ago: If even one CEO gets a golden parachute after running a company into the ground, that is too many. Getting fired or removed should not pay millions of dollars on top of a salary of millions and millions and millions.

Nope they get hired by boards that are as crooked as they are. They have abandoned their "Fiduciary Duty" to make each other rich before they move on to another company.

Good luck with that, all I can ask is that you reward your workers as well as you reward yourself. Let me put it another way, you take a million in bonus give each one of them 10K, not ten bucks or even a hundred. For every 100 workers it will cost you a million, just think of the joy you will spread and the boost to the economy you can provide for a little of the profit. How much of your million in bonus are you going to spend? Maybe none, they are going to spend it all paying debts and buying stuff they couldn't afford on the wages they earn. And if you are looking for a worker who can get the job done….
24 months ago: Greed is allowed. Greed at the expense of all else is not. The boards and CEO's of many of the companies and banks and credit companies, are so wrapped up in paying themselves huge salaries and bonuses that they are willing to gouge customers as hard and deeply as they possibly can without exceeding the law, and even then they aren't afraid to bend the rules to add a few more million to their pockets. They are dealing with millions of customers and if they can get 10% of them to pay a $39 fee for being late or over the limit fee one time a year, that is millions of dollars they can reap as pure profit. All they have to do is move the due date one or two days each month or decrease your limit and poof! got ya!
Altruist
Altruist
Eugene, OR
24 months ago: I think the main problem with Capitalism is that it is only concerned with the acquisition of money. It has nothing to do with the work ethic, pride in your work, or doing things because it is the right thing to do morally or not doing things because it hurts and harms others. Capitalism says it doesn't matter how you make the money, you can cheat, steal, sell drugs, steal children and sell them for sex slaves, anything is fine with capitalism.
The bankers can take the governments money at no interest and invest that money in high risk derivatives and make enough more in an hour than a regular Joe makes slaving away for ten years. Hedge fund managers can make a thousand times the salary of the police, teachers, and the firemen who actually do something important for a living.A lot of the rich get their money from war profiteering or laundering money from drug cartels or by profiting from stock sales that are computer generated and traded again within seconds. These guys didn't work hard for their earnings and in many cases they harmed the country and many other people to get rich.
Historically these guys paid 90% to 70% of their "earnings" but now the top tax rates are only 30% and they can afford lawyers to find enough loopholes and tax shelters to hardly pay anything.
I think that is what the anger and frustration comes from, they aren't paying their fair share to repay the government that allowed them to get rich. People like Bill Gates and Warren Buffet save millions of lives with their money, but other billionaires like David and Charles Koch who are ranked 9th richest, spend their money manipulating the media and blocking progressive reform. You should do good with your earnings!
Siempre Solo
Siempre Solo
Auburn, NY
24 months ago: Sixholden,

Employee’s at any level don’t risk anything unless they are co owners of the company! By risk I am referring to risking capital. The poor have no capital to risk so getting a job is a win/win situation.

As for CEO’s and corporate board members getting obscene pay increases and bonuses that is a whole other rant for another day. For the record though I am totally against it!

As for Capitalism, like I told Nettik, Capitalism is not the problem, greed and corruption is!
Siempre Solo
Siempre Solo
Auburn, NY
24 months ago: Nettik,

If Capitalism is the problem then socialist Communism is the solution because they are polar opposites but as history has taught us Communism is a greater problem then capitalism ever could be. The fact is that greed and corruption exist everywhere not just in Capitalism. Capitalism may bring out the worst in people who want to do bad but it brings out the best in people who want to do good. Paul Newman’s line of food’s has been making huge profitable returns, all of which go to charity, Bill gate as I said before spends a huge chunk of his profits in fighting disease and poverty in Africa and that is just two examples of what could be hundreds if not thousands of wealthy people that invest their money not just in financial gain but the betterment of humanity. Never equate greed with wealth because the poor can be just as greedy! A welfare mom with 8 kids and no father for any of her babies who is asking for handouts and hand-ups is not just greedy but lazy. She belongs in the same category as Sixholdens, CEO.
Siempre Solo
Siempre Solo
Auburn, NY
24 months ago: Altruist,

I think you hit the nail on the head with your last sentence, “You should do good with your earnings!” The pursuit of wealth should be tied to a tangible goal that can be measured by its own productivity, even if that goal is to make sure that all your employee’s get a living wage. Money is a tool and above all tools it can do the most damage or the most good based upon how the user wields it and that sits at the center of a Capitalist society. We in this country have a foundation of humanist/Christian ideals that we enforce vigorously by our lifestyles. Lifestyles that are possible because of our Capitalist ethics. So two seemingly periodical value systems harmoniously work towards the betterment of America. But ultimately it is up to the individual to be selfish or generous.
24 months ago: Al, you say it better than I do. I just wish Gates and others would spend their millions here where they made most of them instead of in Africa and other countries where the rich just get richer and do little for their own people.

SS, we are going to disagree on that risk factor. I've been there and lost it all while watching the Big Boss get canned and lose nothing because his "Golden Parachute" kicked in. Find me one common worker who will get more by getting fired than he did while working at his agreed upon job. Maybe you are thinking about unskilled workers who can job hop at minimum wage with no commitment to their employer while I'm thinking about skilled labor who can't job hop because there aren't dozens of jobs available.

Right about that welfare bum!!!
Altruist
Altruist
Eugene, OR
24 months ago: Capitalism is just a tool just as money is. Free unregulated capitalism results in crime, corruption, pollution, and greed.
In a civil society greed and immoral behavior has to curbed. The problem is that the people with the power, the ones that profit the most from unregulated immoral capitalism, are also the ones that control the regulation or lack thereof. You shouldn't let the criminals dictate the laws. There are a lot of reputable economists that know why the abuses of the system caused the economic collapse and they tell us that if we don't change the system and put controls and regulations on that behavior the same thing will happen again.
We haven't done a thing since the collapse to prevent it happening again and the Republicans and those Democrats bought off by Wall Street, who are resisting regulation, are endangering our economy and that of the world.

Post a Comment
Sign in or sign up to post a comment.