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Is capitalism a religion we have taken too far?
By Roland Michel Tremblay (about the author) Page 2 of 2 page(s)
So, what do we learn from Gates and Buffett? That capitalism is great indeed, but that it is not all there should be, and it should not become a religion. That a good balance about everything in life might actually bring more freedom and happiness. Greed is eternal, as the Ferengi Commerce Authority would say, but there comes a point when it simply becomes meaningless and cannot serve to justify one's entire existence or course of action, and certainly should not be the main principle upon witch the whole of humanity should be based. Greed is not eternal after all in the Divine Treasury after death. We should welcome entering the Vault of Eternal Destitution at any time, as a sign that we figured it all out, what life is actually really about, which cannot be a Blessed Exchequer. At least, I refuse to believe it.
There are other models that we need to study. The ones born and brainwashed into the capitalist system, driven to madness with this desire to succeed at any cost, and who simply cannot make it. Ruined existences, by an impossible desire responsible for a large percentage of the depression and suicides in our society. It is a fact that, though we have produced time and time again generations of people driven to succeed in such a system, it is clear that only a very small percentage can actually succeed.
Is the hope of succeeding and freeing oneself, enough to sustain such a system? Or is it time to wonder if our values are completely misplaced and that, how we define success and ourselves in society, has to change? Excellent question, you can ponder over that one to your heart's content, especially if you are a failure and worth absolutely nothing, which statistically speaking, I'm sure you are.
Capitalism is certainly better than the previous feudal system. Ironically, we could say that capitalism was sort of invented and made popular in England, where the feudal system never actually died out. I am still a servant to my Queen, working for Her Majesty's Courts Service. And as such, it is illegal for me to talk about politics, and to a certain extent, I would think, to talk about capitalism or anything related to any political agenda. Let my dear Queen sue me, I would love to see that show, because I don't care, I will still speak my mind, and so should you. Who has a backbone around here? You, the people, or the governments? And who can we trust? In God we trust? In Money we trust? Or in People we trust? Yeah, I am asking you, and please do answer truthfully, for once.
Capitalism has a better track record than socialism, and is clearly the winner over any kind of form of communism we have observed in this world. I am however Canadian, and Canada is not pure capitalism like its neighbour. Canada is a mix between capitalism and socialism. I think we reached the right balance, and still managed to become a force of nature in the world, a country which is more readily admired than the United States. There are many reasons for that, not all of them admirable, because we depend and count too much on our neighbour. As a result we can afford to forego an out of control military industry and other things. We never felt the need to develop our own nuclear armament for example, we never needed to, not yet anyway.
Some American States have become a bit more socialist in time. California is the example that comes to mind. I think it is a great example, and that they show very well to the rest of America that there is no need to be extreme in anything, especially not capitalism, because it could ultimately eventually become our downfall. And that, coming from the State that probably benefitted most from capitalism in the history of America. Perhaps they can only afford today to be a bit more socialist because pure capitalism made them so rich in the first place. Who knows, it does not matter anyway. What matters is that socialism means a bit of compassion and empathy for the rest of us. It says: if you are in trouble, no matter who you are and what you have accomplished in this great system of ours, we will help you, we will not let you die without food, a roof and medical assistance. Here is a greater message of hope than the American Dream could ever provide to most of us.
In conclusion, I won't read the entry of capitalism on Wikipedia. I don't feel the need to bore myself to death. I think I said all that I felt the need to say on the topic. Capitalism and socialism are what we think they are, what we make them to be. Yes, I am charmed by Karl Marx and his ideal world. I am also charmed by capitalism. There are also many ideas coming from the anarchist front which I believe are worth integrating as well. However, history tells us that economic systems taken individually, do not work and lead to abuse and unhappiness. Driving a system to any sort of extreme is our only problem, as I believe we already have all the solutions on the table. Extremes have always been our downfall. A perfect mix of capitalism, socialism and anarchism is the answer, eliminating any kind of extreme in between. That might bring the sort of freedom and happiness I'm sure we are all looking for, the real meaning of this existence, no matter in which system we live in and the religion we believe in. In people we trust, and nothing else.
This article is an excerpt of the book Destructivism, The Path to Self-Destruction, written by Roland Michel Tremblay. It is available online for free on his website, it also contains all his previous political articles:
http://www.crownedanarchist.com/destructivism.htm
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