What defines America?

Capitalism

Capitalism is a economic system that recognizes the sanctity of an individual's right to property in himself - what the framers of the Constitution and other thinkers before them called "natural laws."   Man's property in himself is not a right bestowed by government (laws), it is a gift from God, or in secular terms, it just is.  We are born with these natural rights.  Man's property in himself extends to the fruits of his labor (else he would be a slave) such as physical property, his thoughts and ideas, his life, his freedom to exist without restraint, and the right of happiness that comes from the freedoms expressed above.

Capitalism is the best economic system there is for preserving individual freedoms and property in oneself.  Other forms of collectivism make man subservient to government where the state controls what one's freedoms will or will not be.

I was attracted to this article about the dislike and opposition to capitalism that I see more and more of these days.  It astounds me that the benefits of and respect for capitalism are not being taught in schools as early as grade school as it was for most of us older folks.  Perhaps the counterculture movement made capitalism (personal liberty) seem a poor alternative to collectivism (socialism, progressivism, statism).  Unfortunately, without a educational education in economics and political science to show how economic systems define our political systems - and freedoms or lack there of -   collectivism and its variants have gained popularity.  Maybe it's a group thing - a virus of group think that disallows other ways of thinking. Or maybe this generation of teachers don't know what to teach.

I have been seeking to understand the appeal of collectivism since the basic freedoms we cherish in America are in opposition to this economic system.  If collectivism takes over directly or through regulation, we will have become a socialist tyranny.. or what fans refer to as utopia and justice, equity, etc..  This article offers one point of view as explained by a prominent market economist.  Visit the FEE website to read this article and many others.

Excerpts
Foundation for Economic Education, August 15, 2017. By Alberto Mingardi

Why Do So Many Intellectuals Oppose Capitalism?

Friedman also speaks on a matter which has likewise been pondered by many of his contemporaries: why intellectuals oppose capitalism.

To these questions, some have replied that the main reason is resentment (intellectuals expect more recognition from the market society than they actually get); some have pointed out that self-interest drives the phenomenon (intellectuals preach government controls and regulation because they'll be the controllers and regulators); some have taken the charitable view that intellectuals do not understand what the market really is about (as they cherish "projects" and the market is instead an unplanned order).

Friedman rejects the resentment view and proposes a version of the self-interest thesis by looking at the demand-side, so to speak. And it shows – behind the veil of his civility – very little consideration for the tastes of his fellow intellectuals for complex arguments, which seems to me quite a criticism.

Here's the passage:

REASON: Perhaps we can go back to your comment about intellectuals. What do you think of the thesis put forth by von Mises and Schoeck, that envy motivates many contemporary intellectuals' opposition to the free market?

FRIEDMAN: Well, I don't think we'll get very far by interpreting the intellectuals' motivation. Their critical attitudes might be attributed to personal resentment and envy but I would say that a more fruitful direction, or a more fundamental one, is that intellectuals are people with something to sell. So the question becomes, what is there a better market for? I think a major reason why intellectuals tend to move towards collectivism is that the collectivist answer is a simple one. If there's something wrong pass a law and do something about it. If there's something wrong it's because of some no-good bum, some devil, evil and wicked – that's a very simple story to tell. You don't have to be very smart to write it and you don't have to be very smart to accept it. On the other hand, the individualistic or libertarian argument is a sophisticated and subtle one. If there's something wrong with society, if there's a real social evil, maybe you will make better progress by letting people voluntarily try to eliminate the evil. Therefore, I think, there is in advance a tendency for intellectuals to be attracted to sell the collectivist idea.

REASON: It's paradoxical but people might then say that you are attributing to the collectivist intellectual a better feeling for the market.

FRIEDMAN: Of course. But while there's a bigger market for Fords than there is for American Motors products, there is a market for the American Motors products. In the same way, there's a bigger market for collectivist ideology than there is for individualist ideology. The thing that really baffles me is that the fraction of intellectuals who are collectivists is, I think, even larger than would be justified by the market.