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It's probably true that wealth and poverty are largely self-perpetuating, even self-intensifying,
left to their own devices, and that the natural tendency of a free market economy is to accentuate
extremes.
Democracy is a tempering force, however. People vote for policies which limit the excesses of
fully-fledged free market capitalism. There is no major country that I'm aware of that operates an
unrestricted, unregulated free market system. Popular welfare measures exist to some degree almost
everywhere. How much of this people want is something they can choose at the ballot box.
I don't agree that either out and out socialism is a solution, although, as I've said, some measures
of government intervention I think are desirable. I'm not sure exactly what an Islamic economic
system is but can't say I really like the sound of it. Looking round the Muslim countries of the
world, they don't exactly seem to be economic dynamoes. It's probably better to have a mix of wealth
and poverty than it is to have just poverty. |
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No, in a system of socialism, most people never work because they know it will not make a difference
in what they get. A market economy allows us business owners to decide WHAT, HOW, and FOR WHOM to
produce. The government should not have absolute control over the economy. Although, of course we
should help the poor, wealth is not supposed to be equal. Our economy would actually be much, much
worse under socialism. By the way, wealth is not distributed, it's earned. |
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The free market with modification is the economic system that best fits the definition of what it
mean to be a human being.
First, humans seem to flourish when there is greater freedom i.e where they can implement their free
will without oppression or huge differentials in political rights. Therefore, the economic system
of capitalism which guarantees a more "free" flow of ideas, abilities and hard work in the market
place and that the individual is rewarded by his or her contribution and efforts seem fair and just.
Having said that, the definition of human beings also includes a tendency to do nasty things
(evil). In any institution, this factor must be acknowledged. Therefore, pure capitalism must be
modified to prevent against the dominance of the "dark" side of man. |
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Because everything is evenly distributed in Islamic society isn't it? There will always be people
better off than others, it is unavoidable. The carrott of money needs to be there to drive people
to better themselves. This is why the western economies are so strong.
That said differentials in the western world are too great and it is a problem. Islamic law or
communism are clearly not the answer though. |
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Absolutely not. In a free market economy, the best survives and the worst dies. That means those
who are willing to work hard and be creative and energetic stand a better chance of becoming
successful and those who sit around and whine about it don't,
A free market economy works for those who are willing to work for it. |
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21 Apr 2008 06:03
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