Capitalism has been overdone, increasing wealth and power in the pockets of only a few. At the same time, poverty has been growing. Is that moral? Is that “do unto others?”
The cry we hear so much is that capitalism’s free markets lead to a free society. That has not been the result for people on the lower poverty rungs.
Former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich once said the bottom line of capitalism eroded the power of the people in our democratic government. Reich said capitalism increases the economic pie, which theoretically helps everyone in our democracy. However, inequality of income has been the continuing result, and we all know who has, who had and who continues to receive the increasing amount.
Too many citizens of our great democracy live in poverty. That is not, “of, by and for the people.”
Jim Wallis, the religious leader, said, “Capitalism has caused thoughtless greed. Greed is good for the 1 percent; it is all about me, and I want it. The market has become our god or golden calf.”
Wallis, a minister, frequently uses religious support for a successful democracy. Ethics and morality agree. Will capitalism permit it? We are mainly a Christian nation. Is this feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, healing the sick and visiting those in prison?
American economics journalist William Greider said that as corporations scramble for wealth and power, the risk failures are too often financially covered by taxpayers. Those risks include coal-mine accidents, oil spills and failing Wall Street banks — even those that were supposed to be too big to fail.
Former teacher and commissioner of education in Vermont Richard Gibboney said unchecked capitalism is destroying our public schools by penalizing schools in poverty. Children from poverty are penalized for their failure and for the teaching staff’s failure to work educational miracles.
Theoretically, our democracy is to accomplish what we cannot do as individuals. However, this cannot be regularly achieved when companies increasingly use their greater funding for public relations, lobbying and campaign contributions that really are bribes and kickbacks and that allow them to enjoy laws that give them competitive advantages and lower taxes.
As a result, we are overspending on our military and empire-building and underspending on our infrastructure. Martin Luther King called militarism an imperial catastrophe that has produced a military-industrial complex and national security state; it has warped the country’s priorities and stature, as with the immoral drones now dropping bombs on innocent civilians. We term it “collateral damage” and proceed with the program.
Free trade has been used to aid our economy but has caused corporations to move overseas for cheaper labor. And rightly so. The purpose of capitalism is to get good deals for consumers and investors.
We know the deal we are getting. It comes from workers being forced to settle for lower wages and benefits, companies shedding their patriotic loyalty to join the global supply chain, CEOs taking home exorbitant paychecks and industries that often wreak havoc on the environment.
Bernie Hughes of Superior is professor emeritus of educational administration at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.