Capitalism is… books

It is easy to overlook the miracles of capitalism. They surround us, but they blend in and become invisible. They become the ‘new normal.’ We take them for granted. This helps explain why some people don’t give capitalism the credit it deserves. So, let’s shed light on some of these miracles. Here, we’ll look at …

Is capitalism compatible with Christianity?

Pope Francis has made several comments that are at least somewhat anti-capitalist. This is not totally surprising, since he hails from one of the most anti-capitalist countries on the planet, Argentina. He is not alone. Others have also questioned whether capitalism is compatible with Christianity. This then becomes a reason to criticize capitalism. Is capitalism …

Crazy example of banks twisting the rules

One reason that people support larger government is because they assume government rules and programs will accomplish their stated goals. However, this rosy view is often not supported by reality. Let’s look at an interesting example that was in the news recently. The background A May 19th Wall Street Journal article points out that certain ritzy …

With capitalism, who holds power?

Some people believe that corporations in a capitalist economy wield tremendous power. Hollywood movie plots reinforce this view by depicting corporations as powerful and shadowy entities. Is this accurate? Not really. In the real world, (a) corporations wield far less power than imagined, (b) consumers and employees hold more power than they think, and (c) …

Crony Capitalism ≠ Capitalism

One reason people don’t like capitalism is because they think it is unfair. One reason people think capitalism is unfair is because they believe that crony capitalism is the same as free-market capitalism. It is not. In fact, crony capitalism is closer to the opposite of free-market capitalism. What is crony capitalism? Crony capitalism is …

Are CEO’s overpaid?

You may have seen headlines saying that CEO’s make 300 times more money than the average worker. These can be deceptive. The data may not be comparable, or cherry-picked for “wow” factor based on only the largest companies. I realize this post may be unpopular, even though it is not a full defense of CEO …

Why we should be pro-business

The more I ponder the topic of capitalism, the more convinced I become of the importance of businesses. I used to think of businesses as generally a good thing because they provide jobs, but I see now that it’s much more. Everyone should want a business-friendly environment. Not because it helps businesses, but because it …

Prosperity Time Machine (2 of 2)

People have become tremendously more prosperous over the past two centuries, at least those who live in countries that practiced something like free-market capitalism for a sustained period. In my last post, we looked at how incomes have grown in different parts of the world. In this post, the time machine will take us back …

Prosperity Time Machine (1 of 2)

I think one reason some people don’t appreciate free-market capitalism is that they take prosperity for granted. They don’t really notice how prosperity has improved over the decades, so they don’t really think about how it happened. This is somewhat understandable. The slow unfolding of events over decades and centuries makes it difficult for anyone …

Is 3% Growth Possible?

The growth rate of the US economy has been in the news recently, for a couple reasons. First, economic growth in recent years has been lower than the historical average of roughly 3%. This has led some people to predict low growth as the new normal. Second, the budget released last week by the Trump […]