It seems like a joke, but it’s actually not — or, at any rate, not an intentional one: in his latest propaganda film, Michael Moore is attacking capitalism in the form of a huge and wide-release corporate studio-film, a film for which he’s also serving as the producer.
It’s difficult to know if Michael Moore is actually this ignorant, or if he just thinks his viewers are.
“Capitalism is evil,” says Michael Moore. And by capitalism he means bourgeois socialism, which is also known as crony capitalism.
True capitalism is a social system based upon private ownership of the means of production and the preeminence of the individual over the group. The word capitalism was actually coined by Karl Marx. Marx used it to denigrate private ownership of the means of production and the autonomous workings of the free market.
Capitalism is an entire political theory – not, as is sometimes supposed, merely economic. In this regard – and only in this regard – it is akin to communism.
The exclusively economic component of capitalism may be described as the right to life, liberty, and property applied to commerce and industry.
Pure laissez-faire capitalism, which does not exist now and has never existed fully, means that government removes itself from all commerce (and that includes healthcare), in the same way that government removes itself from your bedroom.
In addition to early America, there is at least one other society that has come close to laissez faire:
“After the War, Hong Kong had no minimum wage, low and simple taxes, zero tariffs, zero capital controls, and a stable legal environment. Postwar Hong Kong went as far with economic laissez faire as any other country in history. This resulted in economic development that benefited virtually all the people of Hong Kong. Living standards increased substantially even for the poorest people in Hong Kong.” (Stefan Karlsson, Inflation Leads to Protectionism, 2004).
Capitalism means that commerce and industry are entirely privatized.
Corporations that receive government subsidies are not capitalistic. They’re the opposite: they’re mercantilistic.
The same is true of small businesses and farms that receive subsidies.
Trade tariffs are not capitalistic but mercantilistic.
Mercantilism is an ancient and more primitive form of socialism. It is socialism before Karl Marx.
Political theory is the theory of government, and government, properly defined, is the body politic that possesses rule over a certain geographic region.
Economics is the science of production and exchange, but production does not just mean agriculture, although that is certainly included.
Productive work is any kind of work geared toward the task of survival – survival in the fully human sense of the word, including, therefore, arts, sports, industry, and so on.
Thus the essential questions of government are these:
Do humans exist by right or by permission? Are we free by nature? If so, why? Are we free to produce, exchange, and exist, or do politicians, elected or not, have authority and jurisdiction over the lives of us – to any degree?
Obviously, there’s only one sane answer to all these questions; for to say that humans do not exist by right is the same as saying humans only exist when someone permits us to. But if that were true, we must then ask: who permits? And why? And who gives these people permission?
Fundamentally, political freedom can be achieved only through recognizing each and every single individual’s right to life.
If, then, you believe that we are each individuated and sovereign, and if you believe that our lives are entirely our own and not the government’s and not another’s, if, in short, you believe “we each have a property in our person,” as John Locke said, then you believe in the inalienable right to life, liberty, and property.
You believe, therefore, in laissez-faire capitalism.
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This entry was posted by rayharvey on Tuesday; September 8th, 2009 at 2:43 am and is filed under Fact Of The Day, Marxism, Socialism, U.S. Economy.
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Word count: 633.
Tags: bourgeois socialism, Capitalism: a love story, Communism, Crony Capitalism, Karl Marx, Michael Moore.
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Well … Ray … “I believe” … yes; I am a capitalist.
As always, your articles are both informative and interesting!
I am against the federal government “reforming” healthcare. That’s too much power for an entity that is at heart of our current problems. The solutions are so obvious it almost hurts to see them tiptoeing around them:
1) If we want competition, we can have it by allowing competition across state lines.
2) Remove hundreds of state and federal mandates that continue to drive up costs by requiring needless coverage (such as maternity, etc, for those who do not need it).
3) Tort reform needs to go much further than merely putting caps on non-economic suffering. The spectre of malpractice claims looms no matter how low or high the caps are.
4) Expand Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs), which has proven the most successful health insurance model for reducing costs, increasing quality of care, and incentivizing better health & lifestyle choices.
5) Use the Medical MSA model of health insurance become an option for Medicaid and for MediCare and for those who cannot afford insurance, a voucher system can be made available.
Dr. Max Chartrand: Bravo … on points 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Opening health insurance to interstate commerce and competition, in itself, will tremendously lower costs.
Hi Luke! Thank you for your comment. Sorry it’s taken me this long to get back here. I’m afraid I’ve been indisposed.
Thank you Dr. Chartrand for your excellent comment. I like what you have to say, and I like how you say it.
P.S. See Harvey at the podium, giving his laconic speech.